House Insurance and Solar Panels

VictorM_2

Trace and access refers to the escape of water peril. It does not have anything to do with roof damage.

In my experience I have never heard of an insurer not paying for scaffolding etc when it is needed.

Doc_N

thenudeone wrote: »

I wouldn't bet on that at all.

I don't know whether you were referring to insurance in general or solar panels in particular, but in general some policies do not cover the cost of trace and access. A friend of mine had a burst pipe over winter. The insurers would pay for the repair to the pipe itself but not for removing part of the wall to find the leak and access to the pipe.

This exclusion is common and described here: http://www.financial-ombudsman.org.uk/publications/ombudsman-news/58/58-home_insurance.htm

So even if an insurer says "we cover solar panels" it does NOT necessarily mean that they will pay all costs involved in accessing the panels.

I see your point, but this is an issue which frequently arises with flooding/water damage claims. Most policies cover the damage caused by the escape of water - but not the cost of fixing the damaged pipe. That's the real reason these claims were rejected:

Mr and Mrs G were covered for loss or damage caused by "escape of water". But they were not covered for " trace and access" – the cost of finding and repairing the source of the damage.

As with most home insurance policies, the "trace and access" cost and the plumber's fees for replacing the damaged pipe were uninsured losses, which had to be borne by the policyholder. We rejected the complaint.

In the case of solar panels, it's the panels themselves that are insured (if you're with the right company), and if there's an insured event, the full repair cost should be payable.

As always, though, it will depend on the exact terms of each individual policy - and these can and do vary, even within the same company. Halifax, for example, issue several policies, all with different wording, and the policy you get depends somewhat on the price you pay. Some of these policies are more restrictive in their wording than others.

Kernel_Sanders

Brummie71 wrote: »

Indeed - my mistake in terminology. I should have used insurable interest. My bad.

"My bad"?
It amuses me that you follow an admission of poor terminology with an even worse one!

jennifernil

We are with Bank of Scotland, our policy specifically mentions and covers our solar panels.

YorkshireTraveller

To add another datapoint, we're insured with Saga and they have confirmed that our solar panels are covered under our standard buildings cover.

pcrosland

See here: https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/3218200