Parliament’s Portfolio Committee on Human Settlements will this weekend hold public hearings into the Housing Consumer Protection Bill in Limpopo.
The three-day hearings will be from 26 – 28 August 2022 and are part of the nationwide public hearings programme conducted by the committee to garner the views of the public on the Bill.
Committee chairperson, Machwene Semenya, said South Africans have faced challenges, including houses built on unsuitable land, poor inspection of houses, and the use of unregistered and inadequately trained homebuilders, which exposes consumers to unmitigated risk.
“At the centre of the Bill is the intention to regulate and streamline processes to ensure consumer protection within the home-building environment. Through this Bill, it is hoped that by appointing registered builders, homeowners will be assured of quality housing and extended protection through the extension of warranty cover,” Semenya said.
Semenya said the Bill proposes these protections through the repeal of the Housing Consumer Protection Measures Act of 1998 by providing protection for housing consumers, the registration of home builders, the continuance of the home warranty fund, and a framework to claim against the fund, as well as the continuance of the National Home Builders Registration Council as the National Home Building Regulatory Council.
“The Bill’s main intention is to broadly protect consumers and ensure that they are able to access warranty cover should they need it. Another important pillar of the Bill is its transformative outlook, which seeks to improve builders and downstream the consumers [and] this protection is proposed through the Bill’s call for proper training of builders, which will promote economic participation,” Semenya said.
Furthermore, a database of registered builders and their grading will assist the sector in understanding the types of builders that are available, and at what level.
The first leg of the hearings in Limpopo will be held at Lulekani Community Hall, Ba-Phalaborwa Local Municipality, on Friday, followed by a hearing to be hosted by Polokwane Local Municipality on Saturday. The venue is to be confirmed.
On Sunday, the committee will conclude its programme in the province with public hearings to be held at Tafelkop Farmers’ Community Hall, Groblersdal.
The hearings follow public consultations that took place in four provinces where participants highlighted the importance of the Bill in protecting Reconstruction and Development Programme (RDP) beneficiaries against unscrupulous constructors, who build sub-standard houses.
Semenya said many residents also called for the Bill to regulate against the selling of poor-quality building materials, especially in poor communities.
“There was a view that the proliferation of building warehouses selling poor-quality building materials in townships and rural areas presents a risk to consumers.
“We are hopeful that as the primary beneficiaries of the protections proposed by the Bill, participants will present qualitative inputs aimed at improving the Bill to ensure that it meets daily challenges,” Semenya said.
Source: South African Government News Agency