Congratulations for acknowledging – at last – that too many housebuilders treat their customers with disdain, if not contempt (16 April, page 42).
Over the decades I have grown weary of the tales of defects, little and large, plaguing the innocent fools who believed developers' glossy ads that promised trouble-free products and, invariably, a dedication to customer care.

As a result, I have for many years been unable to recommend anyone to buy a brand new home. On the contrary – by the late 1990s things got so bad that I had to take the initiative and protect new home buyers by persuading mortgage lenders to ban conveyancing solicitors from completing new home sales until they were satisfied that Building Regulations were complied with and final inspections by warranty organisations had been carried out. This has prevented the worst abuses, but, as ITV is highlighting, not all of them. And I never cease to be amazed at rich and powerful companies trying to present themselves as the victims of bias and "compensation culture". Show me a housebuilder who has paid compensation to a buyer and I'll eat my words.

Angie Skuse (Letters, 21 May, page 21) should not apologise for contacting Watchdog. Her only mistake was waiting 18 months before doing it.

Postscript

Mira Bar-Hillel, London Evening Standard