Leaky home victims paying for 'sins of others'

Northland leaky building victims Gavin and Barbara Williams say the Government plan to saddle owners of soggy homes with half the cost of repairing them "defies natural justice".
"Why should the home owner, whose only input has been paying for the home of their dreams, be liable for the sins of others?" they asked yesterday.
The Poroti couple was unimpressed by Building and Construction Minister Maurice Williamson's announcement of a financial package under which the Government and local authorities will each contribute 25 per cent of costs to repair leaky homes. Affected home owners will pay for the other 50 per cent, backed by a Government loan guarantee.
Mr Williamson compared the leaky homes issue  with "a natural disaster of huge proportions".
With an estimated 16,450 of the 23,500 eligible owners of leaky homes around the country expected to sign up when the assistance package gets rolling early next year, the Government is forecasting its share of the repair bill to be around $1 billion over the next five years.
 
A media release accompanying Mr Williamson's announcement says: "This package is about spreading the costs as evenly and fairly as possible to get action. The priority is getting homes fixed and moving beyond the current state of endless disputes and litigation."
 Home owners who participated in the package would forego rights to sue the Crown and local authorities, but could still pursue builders and other liable parties. Affected home owners will need to make a claim under the Weathertight Homes Resolution Services Act.
Local authorities have been invited to respond to the Government offer by May 31.
Councils in Auckland, Tauranga, Christchurch and Wellington face multi-million dollar repair bills if they accept the package. Northland costs could be  modest by comparison.
The Whangarei District Council is expected to be hardest hit, with 18 Weathertight claims registered. An informed source told the Advocate the estimated council cost was around $2 million.
The Far North District Council has eight Weathertight claims registered, with council cost likely to be between $500,000 and $600,000 based on the financial package formula.
Kaipara District Council development manager Mark Vincent said his council had  two unsettled leaky homes claims on its books - one a Weathertight case involving $10,000 and the other a $25,500 claim.