Flooded Cellar - Do we claim on the insurance?

house_elf

We got back from a nights camping to 18ins of water in our cellar.

This happens every so often for no apparent reason. It is not connected to the weather, but Severn Trent will take no responsibilty for it either.

It is definitely clean water, as Severn Trent have tested it in the past. It is not the service pipe as this was replaced three years ago and made no difference to the flooding problem.

Everything is on bricks, but this time the water was so high it shorted the freezer, submerged some power tools and the wet/dry vacuum cleaner It is also threatening to lap into the boiler!!!!!

Should we claim on the insurance?

I know that is why we have insurance, but will it increase our premiums massively? I am worried we will even be refused insurance in the future:eek:

Please advise if you can.

huckster

At the moment, the loss amount does not appear that much, so I think you should drain the cellar, keep a close eye on it over the weekend and then next week, think about getting someone in, to see if they can find the cause. You should remove everything you can from the room in the meantime. Unless the loss amount is a lot higher that the excess, plus likely increases in premium, I think you should try to deal with this independent of the Insurance for the time being.

If the house is connected to another property, could the water be coming from next door. You need to keep checking to see if you can identify where this water is starting to come through from. Check your washing machine and all other water using appliances to see if the pipes are leaking.

If the water is only coming through intermittently and is clean this would probably mean that it is connected to something that is only used intermittently e.g Boiler, washing machine, toilets. If it was a water supply pipe the leak would be continual. If it was outflow or water table rise, the water would be dirty.

greyteam1959

Could be just rising ground water......and you won't be able to stop that without spending thousands of £££££'s.
Why not installed a pump in a sump with a simple automatic switch ???

huckster

Would rising ground water be clean ? I thought it would be muddy.

Quentin

Do you mean "groundwater" - that's clean!

house_elf

Thanks Huckster, you have just confirmed my thoughts re claiming off the insurance.

The water is truely a mystery affecting us and next door. We are at the top of a hill, so I find it puzzling that we should be affected by groundwater. Would Severn Trent have an overflow pipe which they open intermittently? It's definitely not linked to anything we are using at home and creeps up from the ground.

Mervyn11 the pump is a whole different story! Just got the new one working a few minutes ago! The old pump decided to blow a gasket. AAAAAhhhhhh!

Fingers crossed it will be dry by the end of the weekend.

huckster

You mention Severn Trent. What infrastructure do they have near to your property, which could affect it?

Over the last few days, we have had a lot of rain. Could it just be that there is a drainage problem from guttering, which is somehow finding its way into the cellar. You can test this by removing the bottom section of the guttering and putting the hose down it, with someone checking the cellar.

PasturesNew

I thought groundwater/natural water table level when I started reading ... then I saw you're at the top of a hill and thought it's bl00dy unlikely then.

I'd try that hosepipe trick.

gordikin

house elf, dry out the power tools and vac thoroughly and they should be fine...don't use them until you are 100% sure they are totally dried out. Until you get the flooding problem sorted out I'd move the electrical items elsewhere.

vaio

your local chemical analysis company will be able to test it and tell you whether it is treated or raw water which will give you some pointers as to where to look next.

If it turns out to be treated I'd be tempted to get Seven Trent involved again

greyteam1959

PasturesNew wrote: »

I thought groundwater/natural water table level when I started reading ... then I saw you're at the top of a hill and thought it's bl00dy unlikely then.

I'd try that hosepipe trick.

Could still be rising ground water even at the top of a hill !!
Many many springs rise from the tops of hills.