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Housebuilder Crest Nicholson has delayed its annual results to give its auditor more time to assess the financial impact of improving fire safety in its tall buildings, as it warned of a roughly £130mn hit from extra building safety costs.
The FTSE 250 developer said on Tuesday that its results for the year to October 2024 would be delayed by two weeks until February 4.
It said the extra time would allow it to finally give a total figure for the cost of fixing safety issues in all 291 tall buildings covered by its remediation agreement with the government.
“The company believes this will provide greater clarity for the business going forward and allow the new management team to reinvigorate the business on firmer foundation,” Crest said.
It added that the delay would also give its auditor “additional time to complete standard procedures”.
Following the report of the Grenfell fire inquiry last autumn, the UK government has responded to pressure to speed up work on fixing dangerous buildings with a new set of deadlines to assess and remediate buildings by 2029.
Crest Nicholson has struggled with legacy cost issues including fire safety and cost overruns at some of its older, more complex development schemes. Its new chief executive, Martyn Clark, who joined from Persimmon last June, has accelerated work on building safety assessments.
The company said it expected its total financial provision for remediation costs across all its tall buildings would rise to £245mn-£255mn. It had previously estimated costs of £145mn but the earlier estimate covered only 45 per cent of the buildings.
Big UK developers have agreed with the government to fund the upfront cost of fixing their own legacy buildings, but can try to recoup some costs from other parties such as contractors.
The group will delay its results by a week to February 4 to give auditors “additional time to complete standard procedures and audit the appropriateness of the fire remediation provision”.
Shares were 1.2 per cent lower in early trading on Tuesday.
