2014
COURT OF APPEAL (CRIMINAL DIVISION)
United Kingdom
CORAM
AI Generated Summary
Mrs Hubbard sued the Bank of Scotland for an allegedly negligent valuation report after purchasing a property that later exhibited significant structural issues. The initial judgment dismissed her claim, finding the surveyor's report met professional standards. On appeal, the Court of Appeal upheld the decision, stating that the valuation report was not negligent, did not require a recommendation for a full structural survey, and did not substantiate that Ms. Hubbard had relied solely on the report to purchase the property.
J U D G M E N T
LORD JUSTICE FLOYD: This is an appeal from the judgment of His Honour Judge McKenna, sitting as a High Court Judge in Birmingham on 22 May 2013. By his order, the judge dismissed an action brought by the appellant, Mrs Ann Marie Hubbard, against the Bank of Scotland ("the Bank") arising out of an allegedly negligent survey carried out by the bank's employed surveyor.
Mrs Hubbard is the owner of Ashton House, which is on Pattingham Road, Perton Ridge, Wolverhampton ("the Property"). The Property is a large, post-war, four-bedroom detached house in a private residential area said to be one of Wolverhampton's finest locations. The plot is at the top of a ridge and slopes moderately steeply down towards the south west. Prior to 1884, the land had been quarried. The quarry had been filled in by 1959, but the rock wall of the former quarry ran across the land. In 1979, when the house was built, it was located on its plot in such a way that it straddled the quarry wall underneath, so that the side of the house facing the road was built on rock but the garden side built on soft infill material.
Mrs Hubbard purchased the Property with the assistance of a loan provided by the Bank under their trading name, Birmingham Midshires. The survey which is the focus of this action was carried out by Mr RJ Handley FRICS, a surveyor employed by the Bank, albeit this time under their trading name of Colleys. These different trading names of the Bank account for the fact that there are two names on the pleadings but there was in reality only one defendant, namely the Bank.
Mrs Hubbard paid a fee of £715 for her survey and valuation report and it was addressed to her.
Mr Handley carried out his inspection of the Property on 14 October 2005. Mr and Mrs Hubbard were present at the Property when the valuation inspection took place. Mr Handley was not called as a witness at the trial, but his notes of the inspection included the following:
"NB* Rear bedroom window frame distorted, stepped crack to side wall. Category 0: no RMNFA (no recent movement, no further action – brickwork displaced slightly and slight cracks to rear elevation category 0. Repaired on rear wall also."
The judge was faced with the task of establishing what was in fact the condition of the Property in 2005 at the time of Mr Handley's inspection. He had evidence from later instructed experts, such as a Dr Rutherford, but Dr Rutherford first inspected the Property in 2010 and was having to wo