Audits for New Builds

A new home might still need an audit when it underperforms, feels uncomfortable, costs more to run than expected, or shows condensation, draughts, or heating problems despite a good as-built rating. New-build audits focus less on age-related deterioration and more on construction defects, commissioning faults, control misunderstandings, and gaps between design and as-built performance, which are the most common causes of new-home underperformance.

A new-build audit therefore checks what was designed, what was built, and what was commissioned, and it compares those three with lived experience. A home designed to be airtight but built with gaps, a heat pump commissioned on default settings, or a ventilation system never explained to occupants can each underperform while its rating looks excellent, and an audit that checks design, build and commissioning together can find which link failed.

Defect checks come first: insulation continuity where accessible, air leakage at junctions, window and door sealing, and thermal bridging at details that are often poorly executed in new construction, such as eaves, reveals and service penetrations. An auditor will use thermal imaging and blower door testing where appropriate, not to diagnose age, but to find construction gaps that should not exist in a new home, and to provide evidence for developer snagging or warranty claims.

Commissioning and control checks follow: heating flow temperatures, weather compensation, ventilation airflow rates, filter condition, and occupant understanding of controls. A new home with a heat pump, mechanical ventilation, or zoned controls requires occupant instruction that is often rushed at handover, and an audit frequently finds that a supposed fault is actually a control setting or a filter that was never explained, which can be corrected without construction work.

Gather new-build documents before the audit: as-built EPC, design calculations, airtightness test results, commissioning records, manuals, guarantees, and snagging history, with dates. Note specific symptoms with conditions: which rooms are cold or stuffy, when, under what weather, and what settings were in use, because specific symptoms allow an auditor to test a hypothesis, while general dissatisfaction can only be noted.

Check warranty and developer routes alongside audit findings. Many new-home defects fall under a developer warranty or a new-home warranty scheme, with time limits and claim procedures, and an audit report that documents defects with photographs and measurements supports a claim far better than a general complaint. Note warranty dates and claim procedures before the audit, so findings can be framed for a claim where appropriate.

In the UK, new-build audits sit alongside building regulation compliance, developer warranties, and new-home warranty schemes, each with its own procedures and time limits by nation. A UK homeowner should check warranty terms and building regulation routes for their nation, and should understand that an audit is diagnostic evidence, while a warranty claim is a separate process that the audit supports but does not replace.

In EU member states, new-build audit and defect regimes vary nationally, with different building codes, warranty periods, and handover procedures. A homeowner abroad should check national new-build warranty and defect law, and any mandatory post-completion inspections, before an audit's findings are used for a claim, because claim routes and deadlines differ.

One new-build mistake is assuming a good rating proves a good home. A rating models design and as-built inputs, but it cannot capture construction defects hidden behind finishes, commissioning faults, or control misunderstandings, all of which can make a highly rated home perform poorly in reality. Lived symptoms should be investigated even when the rating is excellent, because rating and reality can diverge in new homes as in older ones.

Another mistake is carrying out retrofit work on a new home before claiming defects. Adding insulation, replacing controls, or altering ventilation without first documenting defects and claiming under warranty can complicate or void a claim, and can mask a developer responsibility as an owner improvement. Document defects, claim where appropriate, and only then consider owner-funded improvements beyond warranty scope.

Keep the as-built EPC, design and commissioning records, audit report with defect photographs and measurements, warranty documents, and developer correspondence, in a single new-home file. That file supports warranty claims, future sales, and any later retrofit planning, because it records the home as designed, as built, and as audited.

Ask an auditor what was designed, what was built, and what was commissioned, and where those three diverge. Ask a developer or warranty provider what claim route applies to each defect found, and what evidence is needed. Those questions turn a new-build audit into a remedy, not just a diagnosis.