They both sold faulty apartments and blamed the homeowners! The court ordered a compensation penalty of 420,000 TL to the contractor.

The homeowners who filed a lawsuit against the construction company claiming hidden defects such as cracking, swelling, and peeling in various parts of the apartment building where they purchased a flat in Izmir have won a compensation of 420,000 lira.

WHEN THE COMPANY DID NOT RESPOND, THEY APPLIED TO THE COURT

Citizens who bought flats from an apartment building in Güzelbahçe applied to the construction company due to openings, cracks, peeling on the exterior of the building, continuous blockage of rainwater channels and balconies leaking water.

The homeowners, who claimed that the company did not respond to their requests and sent a notarized letter demanding the defects to be fixed, filed a lawsuit at Izmir 1st Consumer Court for compensation due to the failure to fix the hidden defects in the building and the increase in defects over time.

THE CONSTRUCTION COMPANY ACCUSED THE HOMEOWNERS

The lawyer of the construction company, who made a defense in the accepted lawsuit, claimed that the apartment owners received the independent sections during the construction phase, before obtaining the occupancy permit, and that the occupancy permit for the independent sections in question was obtained in 2016, and the lawsuit was filed after the expiration of the 5-year statute of limitations.

The lawyer of the company also claimed that the external facade insulation, plaster, and paint cracks were caused by the later fixed balcony frames being fastened with screws on the insulation, stating that "due to this wrong application made by the apartment owners after the delivery, the insulation was damaged, swelling occurred due to water running under the insulation, and the company cannot be held responsible for the defects caused by these reasons."

The defendant's lawyer also claimed that the company employees conducted inspections upon complaints, and that the balconies were washed with chemicals, which caused openings around the ceramics and swelling on the balcony of the lower floor, and argued that the failure of the homeowners to periodically clean the rainwater gutters that drain the rainwater also caused blockage.

DEFECTS IN THE BUILDING WERE IDENTIFIED DURING THE INSPECTION

After the inspections carried out by expert witnesses upon the decision of the court, it was determined that various superficial deformations such as cracking, swelling, and peeling occurred in various parts of the building. In the decision given as a result of the trial, it was stated that the deformations were largely due to the errors made in the roof insulation and exterior application, and it was stated that the ceramic flooring application on the balconies was made without giving the necessary slope to drain the water, and these areas did not allow the drainage of water, and it was stated that the drains were insufficient.

THEY WON 420,000 LIRA COMPENSATION PER FLAT

In the decision, it was stated that the defendant, who is obliged to deliver the property complete and without defects, is responsible for the compensation of 420,000 lira for the repair of the incomplete and defective works against the plaintiffs. In this context, it was concluded that the decision should be made to collect 420,000 lira from the defendant with the legal interest to be accrued from the date of the lawsuit and to be paid to the plaintiffs in proportion to their shares in the title deed.

Güney Çağatay Öz, the lawyer of the homeowners, stated that the victims of defective goods should always assert their rights and said, "We explained the defective parts of the building in detail in this lawsuit. The court also saw the defects in the building during the inspection with the expert witness. The homeowners have the right to receive a total of 420,000 lira compensation for each individual flat."