Paul Everall, LABC Chief Executive, says the new agreement both deepens the relationship and increases its scope. “LABC’s customers have had a really good experience from this scheme. It means they get local authority building control, design feedback, testing services and a warranty all under the same umbrella. It’s the service they’ve been asking us to provide for years. MDIS has worked with us for four years, and together we have created a first class service and built the brand amongst local authority customers.”
Gary Devaney, Managing Director of MDIS, explains how success has been achieved. “It would take a long time to create relationships in the marketplace through advertising and marketing. Our success has been built on the close relationship between local authority surveyors and their customers. The scheme is unique because the customers must be using the local authority for building control. It’s a true partnership between developers, local authorities and us.”
The scheme has developed over the past four years to cover new homes, social housing, self-build, completed housing and road and sewer bonds. Paul Everall explains how it is planned to develop further still:
“We want to add latent defects insurance for mixed use and non-residential buildings into the portfolio. Local authority building control teams devote a great deal of time to non-residential work in retail, commercial, industrial, hospitality, health, education and leisure. With financiers becoming more risk averse and with the problem of bankruptcies destroying the old approach of collateral warranties, latent defects insurance makes far more sense. It is direct insurance, easy to arrange and affordable. Any valid claims get settled immediately. We strongly believe that local authority customers will increase their uptake of this. And, again, it is only available to developers using local authority teams.”
Jeremy Hall, Chairman of LABC and Head of Building Control in Oldham, explains the new agreement. “Both MDIS and LABC needed stability and the confidence to invest in this strategic customer service. The credit crunch and a 40-year low in the building industry has sorely tested us all. Nevertheless, we have proved that by giving customers a complete service with excellent account management that it is possible to buck the trend. Partnerships like this are just as important for local authorities’ relationships in the industry as they are for the private sector. Therefore, we have extended the relationship for five years to create the security and commitment required both by MDIS and LABC.”
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