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[Help] Insurance Question



Dorset Seagull

Dorset Seagull

Once Dolphin, Now Seagull
Feb 21, 2009
4,686
Shaftesbury Dorset ( Hovis hill to you )
My lad has a water leak under his property that has been there for several years but he only realised when I questioned why his water bills were so high. The insurance company sent someone out to check where the leak was as the water company said it wasn't on their pipework. The chap said it was worst case scenario as he couldn't trace the leak because of the solid floor and underfloor heating.

It seems the repair could cost several tens of thousands of pounds to find and fix. A loss adjuster turned up recently and told him to get the work done after which they would decide how much the insurance company would contribute??

Any advice from knowledgeable folk on here would be welcome
 




Uncle Spielberg

Uncle Spielberg

Well-known member
Jul 6, 2003
43,494
Lancing
Who is the buildings insurance with check with ?

Trace and access
 


Guinness Boy

Guinness Boy

Tofu eating wokerati
Helpful Moderator
NSC Patron
Jul 23, 2003
38,938
Up and Coming Sunny Portslade
If the insurance company have sent out one of their suppliers and a loss adjuster, presumably he's already registered a claim and they are now assessing it?
 


happypig

happypig

Staring at the rude boys
May 23, 2009
8,474
Eastbourne
What does his policy say ?
It should show the limits that they will pay for each type of claim.

Edit: just checked my Churchill policy and I'm covered up to ONE MILLION POUNDS for damaged caused by escape of water but there's a £450 excess.
 


Guinness Boy

Guinness Boy

Tofu eating wokerati
Helpful Moderator
NSC Patron
Jul 23, 2003
38,938
Up and Coming Sunny Portslade




Flounce

Flounce

Well-known member
NSC Patron
Nov 15, 2006
6,389
Having been through this myself the first check to make is turning the stopcock off in the house off and then check if the meter is still turning. Ours was. Our massive leak was underground with no obvious water between the meter and the house. The bill to “mole” a new external pipe was about £1500 as it was about 30 feet. Southern Water wanted a few readings post “moling” and then made a refund for the excess water used since the leek became apparent to us. About 4 months.

The water company are only responsible up to the meter, even if the leak is between the meter and the house.

If the leak is not between the meter and the house he has a big problem….

He should also get the water company out to check as well imo.

Is your lad local? If so I would recommend Sussex Water Mains, they were excellent for us.
 
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Dorset Seagull

Dorset Seagull

Once Dolphin, Now Seagull
Feb 21, 2009
4,686
Shaftesbury Dorset ( Hovis hill to you )
happypig said:
What does his policy say ?
It should show the limits that they will pay for each type of claim.

Edit: just checked my Churchill policy and I'm covered up to ONE MILLION POUNDS for damaged caused by escape of water but there's a £450 excess.
Click to expand...
I think the issue is that the big cost is finding and fixing the leak rather than any damage done as a result of the leak. I think the payout on that is minimal
 


Dorset Seagull

Dorset Seagull

Once Dolphin, Now Seagull
Feb 21, 2009
4,686
Shaftesbury Dorset ( Hovis hill to you )
Flounce said:
Having been through this myself the first check to make is turning the stopcock off in the house off and then check if the meter is still turning. Ours was. Our massive leak was underground with no obvious water between the meter and the house. The bill to “mole” a new external pipe was about £1500 as it was about 30 feet. Southern Water wanted a few readings post “moling” and then made a refund for the excess water used since the leek became apparent to us. About 4 months.

The water company are only responsible up to the meter, even if the leak is between the meter and the house.

If the leak is not between the meter and the house he has a big problem….

He should also get the water company out to check as well imo.

Is your lad local? If so I would recommend Sussex Water Mains, they were excellent for us.
Click to expand...
He is in Bristol. The leak is definitely under his property as that is what the test showed. Also he had the damp proof redone last year because of the damp to a wall which it seems was actually caused by the leak
 




Mr Bridger

Mr Bridger

Sound of the suburbs
Feb 25, 2013
4,951
Earth
I do leak detection for a living, so you should be covered under trace & access on your buildings insurance policy.
Usual cover is £5k sometimes 10k, but it’s not limited to that. If it goes over that then a loss adjuster will get involved.
If the insurance doesn’t have their own contractors they use, then you will have to get your own, but make sure it’s a leak detection company rather than a normal plumbing company.
You will have to pay up front then they will supply you with a report to give to your insurance for reimbursement. They don’t usually cover the actual repair cost, but will pay for trace, access and reinstatement.
Sometimes the insurance will try to cash settle, but would advise on not accepting it as guaranteed they’re taking the cheap option.
If a loss adjuster gets involved, their job is to save the insurance company, so it’s worth contacting a loss assessor at this point.
The loss assessor works for you at no cost and will deal with the claim on your behalf. The way they make their money is by doing the reinstatements and charging the insurance direct.
 


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