Bay Window leaking - only a year old. Sob.

[FishfingersAreOK]

We did a whole house renovation last year (1930s semi) and part of this included new windows.

I noticed a wet patch about 8 months ago at the top of the downstairs bay - so on the plasterwork above the downstairs window. Spoke to builder about it and he said to keep an eye on it - it may just have been to do with condensation (we had had a bathroom flood towards the end of the build so had a fair bit of condensation).

Fast forward to a few weeks ago and DH noticed water running from the same spot. This morning, plaster clearly damp and paint flaking.

I cannot bury my head in the sand anymore. We have a leak. Sob. I cannot bear the thought of talking to my (now hated) builder. But I am going to have to aren't I. This surely should be covered by him? The leak needs to be investigated and put right and then the plaster may well be blown (tis where the curtain pole hangs from so needs to be strong).

What rights do I have? What should I do. Just suck it up, call builder and expect him to rectify?

I know it sounds silly, but check that it's been grouted properly. We have a problem with ours, and the fact that it hadn't been grouted has caused problems that over time have resulted in quite a lot of remedial work.

Email the builder and state the facts, and ask when he will be able to come to repair the work, as you don't want it to become worse, so that you have to make a claim on his insurance.

If he's stroppy, tell him you'll get it sorted, and if it's established that it's a build issue, you'll expect him to settle the invoice.

Any work carried out by a builder should be under some sort of guarantee (check the contract).
The leak could be that the lead flashing was not sealed properly. Or the grout/silicon was not pumped onto the a clean surface and has not adhered sufficiently.
Good Luck!
:)