Do i really need a FENSA registered company or Building Regs just to change my front door?

[littlemissindecisive]

Seems a bit over the top to me

Current glazed UpVC doors are being changed to half wood, half double glazed doors.

I have accepted a quote from a great joiner who is custom making the doors....the double glazed units will obviously come from a glass company.

Why do i need building regs certificate?

If you try to sell then you'll need to produce evidence that it met the FENSA standard. ie a certificate Details here Are you sure they aren't registered ?

Just been on the website - not according to their list online Will have to ask him....

Been on the local authority website and i think its £117 x 2 to get building regs approval (although i can't make sense of it so may just be £117 but even so!) The door is costing enough as it is!!!!

We had new windows from a good joiner. But at the time wasn't FENSA registered. In order to remortage the house, we had to pay something like £100 to get a buildings inspector to look at them for 5 secs and declare them fine.

Its got me all worried now Reading about cowboy builders etc....

The quote is a good one, cheaper than the local big company, but not silly cheap that you'd be suspicious either. The joiner seems a nice bloke, and the work on their website looks top-notch. The business has been going 13 years - apparantly.

I have a detailed written quote, and would not pay until the work is complete, and have not been asked to do so. He also says he'll do a follow up call/visit a month or 2 later to make sure we're happy with everything too.

I'll obviously have to get in touch with him and see what he says.

LMI - it says here that doors with less than 50% glazing don't need to be registered - see here on the Fensa site.

Not sure how this intersects with the Local authority building regs, maybe give them a call and see?

May I be really rude and ask how much your joiner is charging? only because we are considering something similar and wanted a vague idea of costs before hauling people out for quotes.

youngvisitor you are fab! Thanks for that - i didn't read that bit just got freaked out by the rest.

We have to have our doors custom made as the house is that old, doors are quite wide and higher than standard doors and we need two, or one door plus sidelights. Quotes have come in from £1200 to £1600 from 3 different people. (At first i was very [shocked] but that seems to be what it costs) Including frame, fitting, locks, hinges etc (told it would be about £300 less if a softwood door).

Thanks again!

Hooray! hope it means you don't need any permissions. Perhaps check with the council in case there is some other legislation that applies, but I think it only applies to windows and glazed doors.

Thanks for answering my personal questions! as you know from my other thread, we're considering taking on a horrible UPVCed wreck and I'm trying to guesstimate costs. A grand is what I'd guessed, so sounds like I wasn't too far out.

Was the £1600 the quote for both the doors or just one?

When you come to seel there is a standard question on the Property Information Form asking about replacement doors and windows. If you can't provide the FENSA certificate then you will have to pay for a (pretty cheap) insurance policy to cover the miniscule risk of enforcement action, cheaper than paying for building regs approval.

2 doors as in double doors/french/storm or whatever....price was for the whole job, ripping out the old ones and fitting new etc

thanks too battery - don't plan to sell for 30 years so will chance it and worry about it then...cheap insurance sounds a good option if ever needed!

youungvisiter - the front doors are one of our last jobs! I have hated them since day one but they've done thier job while we've spent years doing the other work inside.

Our victorian house had most of its original features ripped out so we've been trying to restore some character. I've loved doing it....dh not as much....not sure what i'll do with myself when its all done - re-do the first rooms again?

have you decided on which house you are going for?

we've put in a cheeky offer on the big house - didn't dare to say it on the other thread as everyone was so passionate about their own POV!

But if our offer gets refused then we'll go for the smaller house, we can't pay over the odds and do the renovations we want.

ooooh - good luck and fingers crossed!

most on the other thread seemed to say go for the cheap one. I think it depends on how far you have to stretch and for how long!

I'm pleased we did it - a careful few years but by no means on the poverty line and now we have our forever home! Couldn't stand the hassle involved in trying to move again.

it's not a huge stretch tbh - I'm very careful about debt and money. It's more that our mortgage on our current place is now pretty small, so it's a big psychological jump to take on quite a bit more debt plus all the hassle of renovations etc.

eek, not sure whether to be worried if they accept, or worried if they turn us down!

you sound exactly in the same position we were in, and thats how i felt! Our mortgage doubled, and it made me wonder what we used to spend all our money on (this was pre-kids so i guess fancy holidays, nice meals out etc)

good luck - things all happen for a reason!

Batteryhuman as the FENSA issue has been around for such a long time now if I was buying a house and they couldn't provide the building regs certificate I would wonder what else they had skimped on, insurance policy or not.

There is now a question when you sell from the solicitor asking you to list EVERYTHING you have done to the property and EVERYTHING you know to have been done since the property was built.

We provided all our building regs certs and the solicitors letters from when we bought that house stating what the previous people had done, including the insurance policy for the cheap crap windows they had put in after the FENSA regs.

After a solicitor was sued for their negligence the solicitors now have to cover their asses with questions as to what alterations have been made to a property.

Doors won't have more than 50% glass in so i'm ok.