What is Snagging List?

Full Definition

A snagging list is a written, itemised record of minor faults, defects and unfinished details in a newly built home -- things like poorly fitted skirting boards, paint splashes, sticking doors, ill-fitting kitchen units, minor plumbing leaks, or cracked tiles -- compiled by the buyer, or more thoroughly by a professional snagging inspector, shortly after legal completion or practical completion of a new-build purchase, so that the builder can be asked to fix each item under the terms of the new-build warranty and the builder's own initial two-year liability period. The term "snag" in this context refers to a small, usually cosmetic or minor functional problem, as distinct from a major structural defect (such as a problem with foundations or load-bearing walls), which would instead fall to be dealt with under the structural insurance element of a warranty such as NHBC, LABC Warranty or Premier Guarantee cover once the initial two-year builder-responsibility period has passed. Buyers of new-build homes are generally strongly advised to compile a snagging list as early as possible after moving in, and ideally before final completion money changes hands or very shortly afterwards, both because some defects are easier to spot and to prove were pre-existing shortly after handover (before ordinary wear and tear from daily living begins), and because most warranty providers and builders operate a structured process for reporting and resolving snagging items within defined windows, commonly requiring the initial list to be submitted within the first few weeks or months of occupation, with the builder given a further reasonable period to complete the agreed remedial work. Many buyers choose to instruct an independent, professional snagging surveyor -- distinct from the standard structural survey used when buying an existing property -- who will systematically inspect the property against building regulations and reasonable workmanship standards and produce a formal, often lengthy, photographed snagging report, since new-build properties, particularly on developments completed under time pressure, can have surprisingly large numbers of minor snags (reports listing over one hundred individual items on a single new-build house are not unusual) that an untrained buyer may not notice or know how to describe precisely enough for the builder to act on. Worked example: a buyer completes on a new-build three-bedroom house and instructs a professional snagging inspector two weeks after moving in, who identifies 74 individual snags ranging from cosmetic paintwork issues to a dripping tap and a poorly sealed window frame; the buyer submits the itemised, photographed list to the developer's customer care team, who are contractually obliged under the sale agreement and the new-build warranty's initial defects period to arrange for a contractor to fix each item, with the buyer following up to confirm each snag has genuinely been resolved rather than simply marked as closed.

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