Ong: Still best to go to court for redress

The Star 23/02/2001 By Clarence Chua

Petaling Jaya: The courts are still the best place to resolve disputes over compensation for late delivery by housing developers, Housing and Local Government Minister Datuk Seri Ong Ka Ting said.

He was commenting on reports calling for legislation which would make developers pay the late delivery penalty without being taken to court.

At present, it is automatic for buyers to pay late payment charges to developers if progress payments are delayed.

The reverse, however, is not always practised.

"If the developer tries to avoid paying liquidated damages for late delivery of the houses, the purchaser can bring them to court," Ong said yesterday after launching a virtual property fair - Propertyinside.com - at a shopping centre in USJ here.

He said compensation was a contractual matter and both sides had to abide by the agreement signed by them.

Ong, however, added that a housing tribunal had been proposed as part of the new Housing Development Act to handle claims for units costing under RM25, 000.

Asked whether the cap of RM25,000 was too low, Ong said for cases that involved huge sums of money it was better for the matter to be handled by the courts.

"If the amount is big we feel that it is safer to refer the matter to the courts," he said.

 |Follow-up: HBA'S VIEW POINT :  The arm of the law is to protect the public..|