No one will insure me because of underpinning!!?

PeteJC21

Hi,
I just tried to get some home insurance quotes because my insurance is running out soon, however my property (mid-terraced) was underpinned about 5 years ago due to some subsidence/ground movement. However when I entered this into the form the search results came up saying no one will insure me due to this ground movement!

So now what?? Go without insurance and hope for the best? Can I get contents insurance without building insurance?

tanith

My brother once told me having had underpinning done on his house that his current insurer couldn't refuse to reinsure him.. not sure if thats right but I do remember him telling me that...

PeteJC21

tanith wrote: »

My brother once told me having had underpinning done on his house that his current insurer couldn't refuse to reinsure him.. not sure if thats right but I do remember him telling me that...

When I spoke to my current insurer (YourMove/Aviva) they said there was nothing on their records to show that I had told them about the underpinning before, so now their saying they probably cant renew my premium. If they can it will likely go through the roof!

dogbot

your current insurer should continue to offer cover at renewal. You may also find a specialist broker who can search a limited market for you.

Anihilator

Your problem is your using mainstream internet insurers. They certainly wont touch you online although a phone call might get you some.

Other option is a broker

Either way it will be expensive.

PeteJC21

I'm planning on moving in 2-3 years anyway, so maybe I'll just go without.

dogbot

PeteJC21 wrote: »

I'm planning on moving in 2-3 years anyway, so maybe I'll just go without.

That would be extreamly foolish. Can you afford to rebuild the property should it burn down, collapse or be flooded. What if a pipe bursts and you have to replace a ceiling, furnishings, fitted kitchen?

If you can't afford to rebuild the place or part of it, it will be very difficult to sell. You also need to have cover in place for the period between exchange and completion of a sale. It will also be very hard to sell the property if you have not been able to obtain cover now, since any new buyer will want to insure the property too.

If you have a mortgage you must have buildings insurance to protect the lenders interest in the property - have you tired asking your mortgage provider's insurance arm/carrier/brand for a quote? Or do you not have a mortgage?

Who were you insrued with when you suffered the subsidence (and so paid for it?) They should have continued the cover as you would have found it difficult to find cover after that claim anyway, so you must have failed to disclose it to the new insurer (nu)?

PeteJC21

The subsidence/underpinning happened before I bought the place. I didnt really know much about it at the time, I just wanted to buy a house quickly before I left for the army (I wanted to rented it out while I was away for long periods).

Anihilator

Surely a troll.

Surely no one would be stupid enough to buy a house with subsidence problems and not know.

dogbot

Possibly, or not.

Go on OP, how do you know about it now then? When did you find out?

PeteJC21

Anihilator wrote: »

Surely a troll.

Surely no one would be stupid enough to buy a house with subsidence problems and not know.

Thanks for your useful comments, d!ck head. I was a first time buyer at the time and had no knowledge about properties etc.. and like I said it was rushed because I had such limited time. I had no idea what subsidence was and even if I did I dont remember it being mentioned anyway when I biught the place (I would have avoided the place if I knew what I know now).

I bough the place in Dec 2005. I found some paperwork about when it was underpinned the last time I renewed my mortgage and looked into it, the neighbours told me about some subsidence that affected the property and a few other local properties.