Abstract

Self-regulation has received scarce attention in Spain in both the professional arena, where its practical utility is not valued, and also in the academic world. The situation has improved in recent years and should continue, given the role that selfregulation plays in complex societies. Academic research must: critically analyze the work of self-regulation mechanisms and disseminate that research among the expert community and future professionals. In addition to presenting these ideas in detail, this article describes the findings of an analysis of the first hundred decisions of the FAPE’s Arbitration, Complaints and Deontology Commission, drawing conclusions about the work of this agency of self-regulation.

Abstract

This paper focuses on the study and quantifications of pathologies in solar energy, gas, cooling, heating and ventilation installations, based on complaints filed in the courts by the owners of a large number of houses in which errors appeared in those installations. The relevant complaints filed across all of Spain were studied, in what is an important contribution to forensic engineering, given that access to the outcome of civil court cases is seldom obtained. The representativeness of the data is not partial but total, since the entirety of cases existing in the period under study was part of the sample, enabling us to consider this to be a general exposition on the epidemiology of construction pathologies in installations in houses in Spain. It should be noted that the Spanish construction sector is one of the most problematic ones, due to the dissatisfaction generated in homeowners, and as it is one of the ones leading to the highest number of complaints filed with consumer protection bureaus and in the courts. In the investigation, results have been obtained for each of the installations (183 cases in total), according to the type of anomaly (the most important are dysfunctions, leaks and humidity), the pathological origin (poorly arranged encounters, omissions of elements, among others) and the type of construction where it is produced (especially in block dwellings).