Building standards: procedural handbook (third edition, version 1.6)

6 Appeals

6.1 Matters subject to appeal

6.1.1. The Act permits appeals to the Sheriff Court on the following matters where:

1. Scottish Ministers refuse an application to relax or dispense with a provision of the building regulations;

2. a verifier refuses to grant or amend the terms of a warrant, including deemed refusals, resulting when the verifier has not made a decision within the specified time limits;

3. a verifier refuses to extend the life of a limited-life building, including deemed refusals resulting when the verifier has not made a decision within the specified time limits;

4. a verifier rejects a completion certificate, including deemed rejections resulting when the verifier has not made a decision within the specified time limits;

5. a verifier imposes continuing requirements;

6. a verifier refuses to discharge or vary a continuing requirement; or

7. a local authority serves a notice (regarding building regulations compliance, continuing requirement enforcement, building warrant enforcement, defective or dangerous buildings).

6.2 Time limits

6.2.1. An appeal must be made within 21 days of a decision being issued or of a notice being served. Where a verifier has not made a decision in relation to items 2, 3, 4, or 6, a decision is deemed to have been made by the period specified in the procedure regulations.

6.2.2. For item 2, the period after which a decision is deemed to have been made is three months from the date of receipt of an application for warrant or amendment of warrant if no first report is issued, or nine months after the date of issue of the first report. These periods may be extended by agreement or by time taken to obtain relaxations or views.

6.2.3. For item 3, the period for a deemed decision is one month from the date of receipt of the application is specified, for item 4, 14 days from the date of submission is specified (excluding submissions without a warrant having been obtained) and for item 6, the period is one month from the date of receipt of the application.