CA-2025-001477 - [2025] EWCA Civ 1360

Disputed Head 5: Secured Borrowing Loss

The Pleaded Claim

Paragraph 48 of the Schedule of Loss suggests that these were the losses resulting from the Wilsons’ inability to raise capital by way of secured borrowing on the flats for re-investment. As the judge noted at [29] of his judgment, some of the preamble in the Schedule of Loss was relevant to this item as follows:

“9.

The Wilsons bought both the Flats for cash. At the time of the purchases, the Flats would have been mortgageable because the Defects were substantially unknown. The Wilsons' expectation was that this situation would continue, and that mortgage finance could be raised at a later date, particularly when they required cash.

…

11.

The Wilsons' rationale for their investment in the Flats was:

11.1.

An investment in residential property (as opposed to a different investment) would provide a natural hedge against their children's future need for a property to live in.

11.2.

Cardiff (as opposed to other locations) was a place they knew; it was convenient, and forecasts for the future growth of property prices in Cardiff were good.

11.3.

They would be able easily to realise the value in the Flats (by sale or remortgage) to provide finance to their children to purchase (rather than rent) property to live in once their children were established in secure employment.”