HAPPY NEW HOME BUYERS!

Industry gets top marks in customer satisfaction survey 10 years on from Barker.

Nine out of ten new home buyers are satisfied with the overall quality of their home, according to new figures released by Britain’s home building industry.

The results of the home building industry’s ninth customer satisfaction survey, an independently verified survey completed by 32,137 new home buyers – 56% of respondents - and carried out by the Home Builders Federation and NHBC, also reveal that 9 out of 10 new home buyers would recommend their builder to a friend.

The results will be announced this evening at an industry-hosted event with Housing Minister Kris Hopkins in Westminster, who will hand plaques to House Builders who achieved the prestigious Five Star customer satisfaction rating.  

The survey, alongside the industry’s self-imposed Consumer Code, was introduced as a result of a recommendation in the Barker Review of Housing Supply which was published exactly 10 years ago this month.

Since its launch, the survey has resulted in a steady improvement in customer service levels delivered by house builders. In the first year of the survey only 75% of respondents would have recommended their builder to a friend whilst 76% were happy with the overall quality of their home. Nine years ago there was just one Five Star Builder, whereas tonight 18 will receive plaques from the Housing Minister.

The survey results and the Code, in addition to a ten-year warranty on all new homes and robust building standards through national Building Regulations, all combine to give new build home purchasers genuine confidence in the product they are buying.

Stewart Baseley, Executive Chairman of HBF, said today: “These results clearly demonstrate that consumers are overwhelmingly happy with the service house builders are delivering.

“The people who really matter - those who buy new homes as opposed to industry commentators - are giving us a clear thumbs up.

Driving up customer satisfaction takes commitment from people at every level in an organisation. The steady increase in satisfaction levels over the past decade is a credit to our industry and all its employees.”

Mike Quinton, Chief Executive of NHBC, said: ‘“It is extremely encouraging that buyers of new homes feel so positive about their homes and the service provided by their builders.

“As the number of new homes being built in the UK continues to increase, it is vital that the industry maintains its focus on quality and excellent customer service to ensure these results are sustained in future.  NHBC is therefore committed to continue working with the industry and supporting this important survey in the years ahead.”

Stephen Stone, Chief Executive of Crest Nicholson, said: “Customer service is an integral part of our business and, in a climate where purchaser expectations are continuing to grow, it is more important than ever that we continue to deliver to the highest standards of design, production and customer service. While price, build quality and location are of course major deciding factors when buying a property, it’s how we look after our customers which adds real value to our proposition. The more emphasis the industry can place on collectively meeting the demands of its customer base the better, and the star rating remains an extremely positive endorsement of progress in this area”.

For media enquiries, or to arrange an interview, please contact Steve Turner – 020 7960 1606 / 07919 307760 or steve.turner@hbf.co.uk

Notes to Editors:

1.       The Home Builders Federation (HBF) is the principal representative body for private sector home builders and voice of the home building industry in England and Wales. HBF member firms account for some 80% of all new homes built in England and Wales in any one year, and include companies of all sizes, ranging from multi-national, household names through regionally based businesses to small local companies: www.hbf.co.uk

2.      NHBC is the leading warranty and insurance provider for new homes in the UK. NHBC's ten-year Buildmark warranty covers around 80 percent of new homes built in the UK, having covered nearly eight million homes since it began and currently protecting around 1.6 million homes. Buildmark has evolved over the years, expanding to cover more areas, offering a greater scope of protection for homeowners. NHBC's primary purpose is to help raise standards to protect homeowners. NHBC is an independent non-profit distributing company, reinvesting all resources in further research and work to improve the construction standard of new UK houses for the benefit of homeowners.

3.     HBF’s national survey of new home buyers was launched in 2005 in response to one of the recommendations of the Barker Review of Housing Supply (2004).This report presents results from HBF’s ninth Customer Satisfaction Survey, covering the 12 months October 2012 to September 2013

4.     The HBF National New Home Customer Satisfaction Survey is a continuous self-completion postal census of the new home purchasers. The results include the HBF member companies highlighted in the attached document – as well as a representative sample of home builders from across the rest of the industry.

5.     Of  57,919 questionnaires mailed,  32,137 were returned, a response rate of 56%

6.     Star rating results