Unusual Insurance Question - Possible riparian ownership

lh_111

I have an bit of an unusual insurance question which I have been unable to find any advice for whilst searching the web. I am currently in the process of buying a house (which I currently rent) which has a culvert which runs through the garden. It takes water from a stream above the sloping garden, which enters a culvert which runs about half the length of the garden (is visible). It then disappears underground, runs underneath the road in front of the property, and emerges elsewhere. I am waiting for an answer as to who has reposibility for this culvert. I presumed it would not lie with the homeowner, but internet research has led to to believe that it may do under Riparian Ownership. My question is: if responsibilty does indeed lie with me, as the homeowner, will I be able to insure the culvert against damage etc? It is currently very effective (recent heavy rain left a number of local properties badly flooded - we remained bone dry) - but I dread to think what might happen were it damaged, unisured, and I was unable to afford to fix it (likely, as I presume this would be very expensive).

Apologies for the essay. Would be very greatful for any insight. Thankyou.

dogbot

I would say that this is a question for your solicitor and not here. First, you could well find it very difficult finding buildings insurance given the flood risk and second there is the issue regarding what cover you actualy need.

I would suggest that you have your solicitor urgently enquire with the vendor what their current insurance arrangements are in this regard. You could also try asking neighbours accross the street if they have it running through their land.

This could be a simple issue, where you just obtain ususal buildings and contents insurance and you are covered for the liability (typicaly up to £2m, sometimes £5m - which would be better in this case given the potential flood risk!) that comes with any negligence related to ownership of the property (and so, one assumes, the culvet).

lh_111

Thanks for your reply. I am meeting with my solicitor this afternoon so will hopefully have the matter chased up from that end. The usual searches came up with a 'low flood risk', but that may well be because the property is on high ground well away from the main river. I enquired with the vendor about current arrangements but as yet have had no answer. I will get my solicitor to follw this up. Thanks.

Wol2

Welcome to the hazy (and potentially expensive) world of Riparian ownership.......

Here is a "worst case scenario"....
Unfortunately my solicitor was in-experienced in this area (most are...)and didn;t understand all the implications of Riparian ownership (and didn;t want to even when pressed)... and therefore did not advise me appropriately while I was purchasing my property 10 years ago......Following the flooding events we have had over the last few years (which had only occurred twice in the previous 50 years before I moved in so weren't anticipated and hence probably why the solicitor wasn't bothered!)....... I now could be facing a £20,000 bill to repair a structure that isn;t mine but that no-one else is responsible for, plus a potential £30,000+ to reinforce eroded banks of a water course......... I am now having to run the gauntlet with the Environment Agency to get consent for the repairs...employ specialist engineers and builders and get professional drawings done...........Groundworks etc around watercourses can be extremely expensive because of their specialist nature! Needless to say I had no idea at the time, nor was I made aware when I purchased the property, that I could or should get insurance to cover this eventuality.......


The water course you describe will probably come under the auspices of your local Internal Drainage Board....a list of which can be found here

http://www.defra.gov.uk/environ/fcd/policy/oaidblist.htm

Depending upon the attitude of your Drainage Board (and the amount of money they have)...they may asume some of the responsibility for it's upkeep....however under Riparian law, if they don;t, the responsibility lies with you. Whatever level of responsibility they assume, at the very least they have a duty to ensure that you don;t alter the culvert or block it in any way to interfere with the flow of water and can order you to undo anything you do without their consent or make repairs......

So I would contact your local Internal Drainage Board and asked them for details of any planned maintenance programme they have for the culvert.and what they would do if the culvert got damaged or blocked in some way through no fault of your own (eg by landslip, bank erosion )...you can also get an idea of whether or not there is a flood risk to you and what it's purpose is..(it's there for a reason..and it may not be to protect you but to protect people further upstream or downstream...)...and if you feel you need insurance they may be able to direct you to a suitable local company

....and if your solicitor themselves has not already identified the Drainage Board as a point of reference....well, I'll leave it to you to decide if you are being properly advised...

The two possible scenarios you need to ensure you are protected against are:
1) a standard insurer will not be able to claim that any flooding to your property was a result of you not upkeeping the culvert and thus your buildings/contents claim is not valid
2) a protection (indeminity?) policy in the event you are ordered to make substantial repairs to the culvert by the drainage board.

So a discussion with the Internal Drainage Board should be able to sort out where you stand and enable you to decide on the most appropriate way forwards. (Do not rely purely on information from the neighbours or the vendors......mine were "very economical with the truth")

Hope this helps...wish I had known then what I know now!