We’ve had recent issues around lenders rejecting EWS1 forms completed by one contractor, Tri Fire, due to the actions of one of their employees. We want to assure leaseholders that we are supporting you with your transactions.
EWS1(External Wall System) survey forms are needed for building owners to confirm to lenders that an external wall system has been assessed by a suitable expert as compliant or if any works are required to meet fire safety standards.
The majority of lenders now request an EWS1 form before they will provide mortgages for buildings over 18 metres, but requests for buildings under this threshold are increasing. This means leaseholders need EWS1 forms if they are selling or staircasing their property.
What is the issue?
Concerns have been raised by lenders about Tri Fire who had a fire engineer work for them called Adam Kiziak. Adam has been subject to an investigation by the Institution of Fire Engineers (IFE) of which he was a member. Following a hearing in August 2024 it was agreed that he should receive a six-month membership suspension.
Some lenders appointed by our customers for sales and staircasing have responded by rejecting any EWS1 completed by Adam Kiziak. Some are also rejecting any EWS1 by Tri Fire.
Mr Kiziak and Tri Fire have carried out a large number of EWS1s for us and other housing providers over the past five years.
We are confident in the outcomes of the EWS1 forms we have received as we also use other experts, both internal and external, to review our external walls. However we know this is a concern for many leaseholders as a rejected EWS1 form can cause delays in the selling process.
What are we doing to help?
To support our leaseholders with their transactions, we are implementing the following steps when a EWS1 is rejected.
- Offer the lender an EWS1 from an alternative engineer at Tri Fire. This involves a peer review by Tri Fire who are then able to reissue the EWS1. (This takes approximately 3-4 weeks to issue)
- If the lender is not satisfied by this, some are accepting a letter of comfort. We have a template for this and it will be issued by the building safety team on request.
- If neither of the previous steps is accepted, NHG will commission a new EWS1 with a different company. (This takes approximately 8-10 weeks to issue)
The time estimates above are based on current market demand and supplier capacity, so are subject to change.
We will encourage lenders to accept a peer reviewed Tri Fire EWS1 and/or a letter of comfort. This is the quickest resolution for customers.
Commissioning a new EWS1 involves long delays due to industry wide demand on fire engineers. This could significantly impact the sale or staircasing.
If you have any questions please contact your local officer.
