[Bell Historians] Steelwork into masonary

[Chris Pickford]

Rod Bickerton "The prime contractor is where the buck stops."

Sorry, Rod, you're not having a good day. That can't be right. A contractor would be at fault if he failed to adhere to the specification prepared by a supervising architect. If, where there has been discussion, an architect fails to accept alternative advice and insists on an unsatisfactory specification - and is aware of the risk of failure or problems - then the architect should be held to blame.

It's high time an aggreived parish tested the professional indemnity cover of architects who behave like this. The trouble is, nobody wants the fuss - and litigation is always expensive - but let's be clear that architects can't claim fees and walk away scott free with no liability in cases such as these where "things go wrong" and alternative practical advice has been ignored or brushed aside.

I can't say, of course, how far these principles apply at Kings Lynn - I have not first-hand knowledge of the job - and these are general observations on liability rather than specific ones (ooh, is there a lawyer lurking somewhere nearby to urge such caution?). But I did hear from an informed source (other than the contractor) that the specification was unsatisfactory with regard to the foundation girders and that several people had tried to sort this out before the job went ahead.

The unmentioned tragedy here is what Norman Harding - whose estate went a long way towards paying for the job - would have thought of it all. He just wanted his bells rehung properly

CP


  ----- Original Message ----- 
  From: Bickerton, Roderic K (SELEX) (UK) 
  To: bellhistorians at yahoogroups.com 
  Sent: Friday, February 23, 2007 6:42 PM
  Subject: RE: [Bell Historians] Steelwork into masonary



  Surly Bell contracts are like any other multi skill contract.
  The contract is owned by the prime contractor and what ever goes wrong
  is ultimately his responsibility. The prime contractor is where the buck
  stops.
  That is fair, he is not forced to accept a contract if he is not happy
  with it. He can price it to cover any "reservations" he may have.


  "As in most professions, there is a range of abilities, for want of a
  better word, in the world of the architect. There are those whose
  opinion and recommendations you would trust entirely and also those who
  insist on their own way irrespective of best practice and the advice of
  the trade. King's Lynn and Kevedon fall into the latter category.

  What do you do? It is inevitable and understandable that the bellhanger
  is the one that gets the blame but we are not the ones with letters
  after our name taking the fees for our advice!

  Andrew Higson 
  Taylors Eayre and Smith Ltd 
  The Bellfoundry 
  Freehold Street 
  Loughborough 
  LE11 1AR 
  Telephone: 01509 212241 Fax: 01509 263305 
  Registered in England No. 1352309 "

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