Bovis adds £3.5m to bill for rebuilding its reputation

Bovis Homes has put aside an extra £3.5 million to fix the homes of angry customers who engulfed the builder in a storm of protest earlier this year.

The controversy over rushed, substandard homes and even “bribes” to induce buyers to move into unfinished properties to hit City targets cost former chief executive David Ritchie his job in January.

Bovis has slowed its rate of building to restore a battered reputation for quality, which saw thousands of furious customers join a Bovis Homes Victims Group on Facebook.

The total bill for fixing the homes will now be £10.5 million “to ensure we are fully resourced to complete the works identified as swiftly as possible whilst at the same time delivering the appropriate high level of service to our new customers”.

New boss Greg Fitzgerald is carrying out a strategic review of the business, which will be unveiled in September.

Shares in the company rose 15.25p, or 2%, to 984.75p today as overall trading contained no further nasty surprises. While sales are down as expected, average selling prices rose 9% in the first half to £277,000, driven by changes in the type of home sold and a “modest” rise in underlying prices.

Jefferies analyst Anthony Codling said: “The turnaround is on track and while there is a long way to go, we view the current share price as an especially attractive entry point.”

Since joining Bovis, Fitzgerald has made a big bet on his ability to revive the business, spending £3.2 million on shares. “We like the fact that he is putting his money where his mouth is and has done so before his first set of results,” Codling added.