Welcome to mybadgerhome.co.uk.

Whether you arrived here after receiving a leaflet through your door  or via Google, our aim is to share our experience of dealing with Badger Building after discovering our home was built with weak mortar.

We will shortly upload all supporting evidence and our extensive research for the benefit of anyone else unfortunate enough to be in this position. However, for now, carry on reading to hear our story and decide for yourself whether Badger live up to their claims of ““exceptional build quality and service” maintained by using “…high quality building materials”(Badger website, 2022).

In June 2019 we noticed mortar falling out from our property. We contacted Badger & the NHBC raising our concern. Badger’s contracts manager visited and suggested they could “spray the walls with a product”(link). We politely suggested that we didn’t feel this was the answer. The NHBC also inspected (Badger were invited to this but declined to attend) and concluded that the entire house & garage required re-pointing. Upon professional advice we requested the mortar be formally tested. The NHBC said this was not necessary(link).

In August 2019 Badger offered to undertake the re-pointing(link) (allowing them to maintain their NHBC rating & premiums). We agreed to this pending the results of a mortar analysis that we had now arranged ourselves.

The NHBC (Standards 6.1.14) state that mortar above dpc should be 1:1:5.5 (Cement:Lime:Sand) or designation 3 (BS EN 1996-1-1) (link). Our mortar was analysed by one of the leading UK laboratories (link) and was reported to be 1:3.6:1:21.8 (Portland cement:lime:GGBS:Sand), “weaker than ANY designation given in BS 4551:2005”(link).

We forwarded these results to the NHBC & Badger seeking structural investigation and reassurance. The NHBC acknowledged the “cement ratio is higher than the 5.5 (21.8!) than would normally be expected” but that their policy covered only “damage” and as such, no further investigations were required(link).

Badger’s appointed engineer then collected further mortar samples for their own testing. Despite being analysed by the same laboratory as ours, their samples were reported in a manner that we had been advised against(link). Despite this, their results still ranged from 1:1.1:9.4 (at best) to 1:2.1:11.5 (at worst) equating to (iv) & (v) mortar designations to BS 4551:2005(link). Despite Badger’s appointed engineer only being instructed to report on the mortar and not provide any structural investigation(link), their report “calls into question the integrity of the wall ties”(link) and suggests Badger contact the manufacturer of the mortar to discuss its suitability(link). To our knowledge Badger has not acted on this professional recommendation. Their report also contained the mortar order sheet for our development which suggests Tarmac M2.5 mortar was supplied to site. In 2013 the NHBC issued a ‘Technical Extra” warning to all its members regarding this mortar which read…

“It has come to our attention that factory-made designed masonry mortar mixes with a declared compressive strength of 2.5N/mm2 (compressive strength class M2.5 to BS EN 998-2:2010) are occasionally being delivered to NHBC sites for use on low-rise housing in situations where, historically, prescribed masonry mortar mixes of designation (iii) would have been used. Mortar class M2.5 may be of lower compressive strength and durability than the generally accepted designation (iii) mortar mix commonly used on low-rise housing for external and internal masonry above DPC, in areas of exposure categories lower than severe or very sever(link)

The mortar used on our property appears to be the same class/manufacturer as that used in the infamous Peebles development by Taylor Wimpey which was featured on BBC2’s Victoria Derbyshire’s programme in 2018(link). Due to significant concerns regarding the M2.5 mortar strength, Scottish Borders Council insisted on a full independent investigation into the Peebles estate(link). We will be requesting similar by South Norfolk Council and outlining our findings to Mr. Richard Bacon MP shortly.

In February 2020 (5 months after Badger’s engineer took further mortar samples which confirmed weak mortar affected all elevations)(link) the NHBC advised us that Badger had withdrawn their offer to undertake the re-pointing. The NHBC provided a schedule of works listing the surface area of the entire house & garage to be re-pointed(link). They offered us £8,420.86 to complete the works ourselves(link) and advised we used a reputable contractor. They stated their offer was valid for 28 days after which it may be withdrawn(link).

Taking their advice, we received a quote from the NHBC contractor for the East of England for £34,740(link). Upon submitting this to the NHBC we were told that the quote “appears to show the whole house being re-pointed” and that “this is not required…only localised pointing is needed to the affected areas”. This, despite the NHBC inspector stating that he “would allow for the whole house & garage to be done” during his visit(link), the NHBC’s own schedule of works giving the total surface area of the house & garage to be re-pointed and Badger’s appointed engineer agreeing that “full re-pointing” of “all mortar bed joints” was required(link). Despite countless communications the NHBC have declined to revise their offer. This should be of interest to all Badger homeowners as it appears our NHBC policy does not cover the true cost of the required remedial works on our home.

It is important to state that we have never declined any offer by Badger or the NHBC for them to undertake the work directly. We have only politely sought structural reassurances given the degree of mortar weakness found(link). Badger withdrew their offer to re-point without explanation or notification to us(link). The NHBC has failed to provide any justification for how their offer has been calculated. Neither Badger nor the NHBC have responded to our requests asking them to recommend a reputable local contractor who is willing to complete the work for the offered £8,420.86.

We have, as you might expect been forced to incur significant costs in legal and professional fees (currently circa £10,000 via savings and loans)(link). That is to say nothing of the significant stress and anxiety Badger’s decision to withdraw their offer of re-pointing has had on us as a young family.

We continue to simply ask for our house & garage to be re-pointed (either by Badger/ NHBC or be provided with the funds to allow a reputable contractor to complete the work) and our costs reimbursed. It is telling that even Taylor Wimpey covered the fees of the re-pointing and their customers costs in the Peebles estate (link). Is it unreasonable to ask a company such as Badger that pride themselves on “exceptional build quality and service”(link) to do the same?

If you are concerned about the mortar on your Badger home you may find our resources section helpful. You may wish to request evidence that your house has been constructed from mortar that meets minimum NHBC requirements (link). If you have already noticed weak mortar affecting your property, in addition to notifying the NHBC you may also consider seeking specialist legal advice, especially if you are the original purchaser as a test case has recently suggested that non-compliant construction to NHBC standards may constitute a breach of contract (link).

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Thank you for reading our story.

Residents of Sandy Close.