All housebuilders building private sector homes are now required to comply with a new consumer code of conduct, launched by a pan-industry group including warranty firms and trade bodies. The code requires housebuilders to develop customer procedures covering issues such as information provision on completion dates, contract termination, reimbursement of fees and deposits, warranties and disputes resolution. The code establishes a new independent resolution service to deal with disputes between a builder and consumer which have resulted in the consumer being out of pocket. <br> <br> This is designed to be speedy and effective with a maximum award to the consumer of £15,000. The code has been set up in response to a series of industry reviews including that of the Office of Fair Trading in 2008. However the OFT has withdrawn support for the initiative because of the £15,000 maximum which it wanted to set at £150,000. However the industry argued that £15,000 is appropriate for a non-legal and simple system. “Our research suggests that £15,000 should deal with 95% of complaints,” said Rod MacEachrane, chairman of the consumer code management board. Companies not complying with the new code will face not being provided a warranty by NHBC, Premier …