Notes of the NHBC Consumer Committee Meetings 2007

The Committee has met on three occasions to date in 2007 and covered the following topics.

NHBC's "Your New Home Satisfaction Survey"

The NHBC survey continues to be sent to homeowners, nine months after legal completion of their homes. The response rate stands at approximately 40%, which is considered to be statistically significant.  Over the three years that the NHBC survey has been in operation, the percentages of homeowners who are satisfied with their home, and who would recommend their builder to a friend have both increased slightly.

NHBC also carries out a survey on behalf of the Home Builders¿ Federation (HBF) which is issued to new homeowners two months after they move into their new home.

In collaboration with the HBF, a review of the design of the surveys has been undertaken to ensure that they remain relevant and provide results that are both valuable and informative for the builders. A revised NHBC survey form was introduced in 1 July 2007 and includes some new questions relating to environmental issues such as parking, the development in general etc. The wording of the new survey also matches the wording of the HBF survey  (where appropriate) so that comparisons between the results can be made more easily.

Telephone Systems

The Committee was provided with details of the arrangements NHBC is making to improve its call handling and customer service arrangements.

It is expected that these measures will have an immediate and positive effect on call waiting times and will also reduce the number of mis-routed and transferred calls. One of the items that has been introduced is a single contact number, 0844 880 1000, for NHBC which will enable consumers to have one contact point and as it is a low-tariff number it will also minimise any cost to them.

NHBC Foundation and National Centre for Excellence in Housing

The Committee has received reports on the progress of these two important organisations.

In particular, the Committee was briefed on the project concerning research into consumers' views and attitudes to the zero carbon agenda. The research would also look at the changes to lifestyle and behaviour that could ensue from the occupation of properties built to zero carbon standards.

The work should be completed towards the end of the year and the outcome will be reported to the Committee in due course.

Customer feedback

NHBC recognises the importance of handling feedback, either positive or negative, and has a defined process for capturing and recording such feedback. The information gathered from this data is used to identify areas where improvements are needed to ensure we offer a high level of service and products to our customers.  

The Committee was provided with information relating to the feedback NHBC had received from its consumers and customers. It was also advised that 48 cases were referred to the Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS) between January 2006 to January 2007. Of those, NHBC's decision was upheld in 40 of these cases, 4 were found in the favour of the homeowner and 4 were resolved by way of a negotiated settlement.

Association of British Insurers' (ABI)  benchmarking exercise

NHBC works closely with the ABI to identify and adopt processes which are considered "best practice" for dealing with complaints within the insurance industry. NHBC takes part in the ABI's annual complaints benchmarking exercise which enables it to assess how their complaint handling and processes measure up against others in the industry and to identify where they may need to improve.

The Committee were provided with NHBC's results for last year's survey and whilst these were encouraging, additional measures are being considered to further improve its performance.

Claims On-line Research

In December 2006, we invited consumers to provide us with their views on the new Claims On-line system. Overall the feedback received was positive.

Treating Customers Fairly (TCF)

The Financial Services Authority (FSA) has highlighted that one of the key issues for 2007 is the TCF initiative. This requires that firms that conduct insurance business review their processes and documentation to establish whether customers are provided with clear, transparent services and are not penalised by firms' methods of operation.

Whilst NHBC has adopted the principle of TCF through sound business practices, it needs to ensure that this approach is adequately developed and documented to fully meet the FSA's requirements.

The Committee were advised that NHBC had set up the TCF Forum to develop its approach, identify areas for improvement and to implement action plans to address areas of shortfall. The Committee will be updated periodically on the work of the Forum.

Market Research into Claim handling   

An independent research company appointed by NHBC, sought the views of homeowners who had used the Resolution service or made a claim in the period 1 January 2006 to 1 December 2006.

The results of this survey showed improvements across the board since the last survey two years ago, particularly in the initial handling of claims and the service provided by telephone staff and Claims Investigators. These results compare well with industry averages.

The survey did indicate some scope for improvement and steps are being taken to address those areas identified.

OFT Market Study

The Committee were briefed on the general background to the study and advised about NHBC's submissions to the OFT and the work we are doing with HBF in relation to the development of a fully compliant code of practice for the house-building industry.

NHBC/HBF Working Group

NHBC/HBF has been working together to improve pre-hand over processes and the use of NHBC's Resolution service. The Committee has been kept fully up to date with the progress of this work.