Cladding crisis: We've had a quote of £160,000 just to get an EWS1 form
10 February 2021, 14:19 | Updated: 10 February 2021, 14:56
Cladding crisis: We've had a quote of £160,000 just to get a form
This caller tells LBC she has been quoted £160,000 just to get a form to help sell her house amid the cladding crisis.
Crystel called into LBC to make a point on EWS1 forms after Housing Secretary Robert Jenrick announced the Government is to provide a further £3.5 billion to help end the "cladding scandal" in England.
In a Commons statement, Mr Jenrick told MPs that it would mean leaseholders in high-rise blocks would face no costs for cladding remediation work.
The caller told LBC's Tom Swarbrick that she is in a low rise property and there is no legal requirement to have one of the External Wall Survey forms.
Read more: Flat owners told their homes could be unsellable for 10 years over unsafe cladding
However, she revealed that many mortgage providers have refused to lend money unless one is supplied.
She said on her development a lot of home sales have "fallen thorough" and they have looked at quotes for the EWS1 form.
"We've had quotes of between £140,000 and £160,000 just to get a form," she told LBC.
Cladding Crisis: Labour MP challenges Government over EWS1 form
This led to an incredulous Tom Swarbrick questioning who are the people offering this service.
"They're on the make here, that's unbelievable," Tom said.
Housing Secretary pledges help for high-rise cladding leaseholders
External Wall Fire review forms (known as EWS1 forms) were introduced last year following the Grenfell fire, to prove to nervous lenders that any cladding on residential buildings is safe.
Without one, flat-owners cannot sell, as their homes are valued at ‘zero.’
But, with high demand, and only a small number of qualified chartered surveyors and engineers able to do the work, experts warn the system has become a 'magnet for fraud.'
Read more: LBC uncovers ‘forged’ cladding-safety certificates, costing victims thousands of pounds
