Christine, Leonard Wade’s claim under Qld Home Warranty Scheme for sinking house denied

As the home of a war veteran and his wife sinks into the soil beneath and the building company says it’s hamstrung by State rules, pressure is mounting on the construction watchdog to intervene. VIDEO.

A pensioner couple is refusing to give up their fight for answers from the construction watchdog as their home continues to subside.

This is after the Fraser Coast Chronicle previously revealed the Hervey Bay war veteran and his wife had their insurance claim under the Queensland Home Warranty Scheme, rejected.

Video taken during the first interview in September showed an emotional Christine Wade telling of how their dream home was cracking at its seams and showing evidence of damage to walls and sloping floors.

The couple has since taken to the streets, recently protesting outside the Esplanade office of builder Kerry Campbell Homes.

Mrs Wade, who bought her house on Hughes Rd at Urangan with her husband Leonard in 2020, told the Chronicle this week she would not wish the situation on her “worst enemy”.

She said she was not the same person as she was a year ago.

The couple protested outside the builder’s office for about an hour with the support of a small group of friends and family on Monday, October 17.

“I had to try something,” Ms Wade said.

“We’re getting nowhere.”

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Christine and Leonard Wade protested with a small group of family and friends outside Kerry Campbell Homes on the Esplanade, Hervey Bay on Monday, October 17.

Signs were held by the protesters, reading “Shame QBCC Shame” and “QBCC and Builder Winners. Homeowner Loser”.

Mrs Wade previously said their home was a display house, built in 2018.

She is a full-time carer for her husband, a Vietnam veteran, who has Parkinson’s disease.

After first noticing some damage to their home in August 2020, the couple said they contacted Kerry Campbell Homes and later approached the Queensland Building and Construction Commission to lodge a claim in 2021.

However, as the couple were out of the strict three-month time frame for reporting structural damage, their claim under the QHWS was denied.

The Wades say they would have complained earlier had they realised there was a problem but it took time for the cracks to show.

Leonard and Christine Wade’s home on Hughes St at Urangan is sinking.

Kerry Campbell Homes has rejected suggestions the business is at fault for the sinking house and has offered to help the family in any way they should the footings need to be rectified.

“The QBCC are aware of problems with the soil in this area,” the company said on Friday

“Most builders in this area have had trouble with sub subsidence.

“We have only had two in Hughes Rd area.

“The first one was rectified under direction from QBCC and reported in time frames, with owner happy with result.”

The company said staff had spoken to the Wades about their options, but their hands were tied by the State Government’s regulations.

It added Kerry Campbell Homes had built more than 2000 houses in Hervey Bay, and all were engineer designed, inspected, and certified and built to QBCC and Australian standards.

Cracks are also starting to form in the home’s walls and ceiling.

A Fraser Coast council spokesman said while soil testing was “ultimately the responsibility of the designer and builder”, the council understood the issue could have an impact on the owners.

“The soil type in that area (Wallum) is common across the Fraser Coast,” a spokesman said.

“While council approves subdivisions, the approval process ensures that subdivisions meet the town plan.

“The developer is required to ensure that soil used as fill is suitable and compacted to appropriate standards and are engineer certified as such.

“The building designer and the builder are then responsible for ensuring that appropriate soil testing is undertaken, and slabs and footings meet the appropriate engineering standards according to the soil type.

“The certification is overseen by the QBCC which is regulated by the State Government.”

Cracks are forming on the roof of a Hervey Bay couple's home that is sinking.

The spokesman said the council had inspected the property on the owner’s request and advised the couple to contact the QBCC.

The Chronicle contacted the QBCC and was given the same response as was sent in September.

When asked to respond to the protest action and the fact the Wades were not backing down from their claims, A QBCC spokesman reiterated it was “inappropriate for the QBCC to provide comment about a particular matter”, however if a homeowner suspected defective work at their property, they were encouraged to contact the QBCC immediately.

“The Queensland Home Warranty Scheme, subject to legislative requirements, allows an owner to make a claim on the cost of repairs for defective building work for residential construction work.

“An owner must lodge their defective work complaint within set time frames to be eligible for a defective work home warranty claim.