Class action launched against Fletcher Building’s Iplex over leaky pipes

Fletcher issued an NZX notice today saying it would defend itself in the legal proceedings.

Perth leaky pipe victims have engaged lawyers to launch a class action against Fletcher Building’s Iplex Pipelines Australia.

Fletcher has responded, issuing an NZX notice today saying it would defend itself in the legal proceedings.

Australian law firm Baker McKenzie is bringing the case in the Federal Court of Australia on behalf of people who bought homes with polybutylene pipes made by Iplex.

The class action is against the Fletcher subsidiary which makes and supplies pipes that are alleged to be defective.

Those have largely been installed in residential properties in Australia.

Those impacted are mostly living in homes, thought to be as many as 30,000-plus dwellings.

The case is understood to allege that pipes manufactured with the Typlex resin have an unusual propensity for problems including crazing, cracking, rupture and leaks.

Victims have claimed the pipes are defective and do not comply with the statutory guarantee of acceptable quality under the Australian consumer law.

Lead plaintiff Tracey Watters described what happened to her.

“In the last four years, there have been 10 occasions where Iplex Pro-fit pipes installed in my property have burst or leaked. These instances have caused damage to my property and possessions including ongoing damp and mould issues, and at times my family and I have had to relocate to alternative accommodation while repairs have been undertaken,” she said.

This has caused severe stress and anxiety for her and her family.

“I am constantly living with the uncertainty of when another burst or leak will happen. I am one of many homeowners being forced to deal with these issues and I am hopeful that through this class action Iplex will compensate me and others for the defects in the Iplex Pro-fit pipes,” she said.

Ross Taylor, former Fletcher chief executive, has blamed pipe problems on poor installation.

The company went into a trading halt last year over the problems and established a $15 million fund while causes, resolution and industry solutions were developed.

Taylor said Fletcher was committed to helping the industry resolve issues.

Fletcher told NZX in June this year it was still taking part in mediated discussions with the Western Australian Government and many West Australian builders, including builder BGC.

Last October, Taylor dismissed as “sensationalist” BGC’s claim that it would cost least $750 million to fix failures.

He denied builder BGC’s financial estimate.

Scenarios that better align with the current evidence suggest that an industry cost to repair affected Perth houses could be a fraction of that, something in the order of $50m to $100m, Taylor said, stressing that wasn’t the liability of Iplex alone.

“We have been supporting customers and homeowners with our $15 million fund while causation, best fix methods and an industry solution are developed. We dispute many aspects of BGC’s presentation. There are no abnormal leak issues on the pipe installed on the East Coast of Australia. We are not aware of any issues from this resin in other geographies. Evidence points to installation as the reason leaks are occurring in some houses,” Taylor said on October 13.

Fletcher shares are trading on the NZX around $3.05, giving a market cap of $1.1b. The company will this month announce its full-year result to June 30, 2024.

Anne Gibson has been the Herald’s property editor for 24 years, written books and covered property extensively here and overseas.