house insurance renewal

tribiani

Hi Guys,

Walking in the minefield of replacing house insurance at the moment.

Need some advice, checking through sites I have come across the part where it asks you if there are any trees near the property.
My neighbour has a tree in his garden,the tree must be approx. 40ft in height,the distance from the tree to my conservatory is about 50ft,however the tree is in line with my back garden fence,greenhouse and shed,if it decided to come down all 3 are at risk, the back end off my garage may even be subject to damage, where do I stand in this situation.

The other question asks about flooding damage from any nearby water source, we have no water sources anywhere near the property,we do have a water table problem at times,obviously depending on the amount of rain fall,water table rises,we can have 2 to 3 inches of water in the underside of the house,these houses have had this problem for 30 to 40 years, what should I do in regard to house insurance information, I always make sure,to the best of my ability that I do not leave myself open to the " not covered" response to any claim.

Would appreciate any help with this, sorry it is so long in content.

thanks.
tribiani

huckster

So if they ask whether there are any trees within x distance of the property, you would answer yes and would complete any tree detail as is requested. Policies vary, but most will exclude damage to hedges, gates and fencing if a tree or branches fell down. But they would cover damage to Buildings including greenhouse and shed. The other issue, which is probably the main one, is the damage done by the tree roots to the foundations and underground pipes, depending on the tree type.

Your neighbour would owe you a duty of care to maintain the tree, to prevent damage occuring to neighbouring property. So they should really have it inspected at reasonable intervals, with any necessary works completed. If it was found out after damage had occured that the neighbour had failed in this duty of care, then a claim could be made against them, which should be covered by their Home Insurers. But you would obviously claim on your own policy and they would seek recovery afterwards.

Water table rises can be considered as flooding. So if your property has suffered from actual flooding due to this, you should discuss this with any Insurers you contact for quotes. It is possible they might suggest obtaining professional reports on drainage or other works you can have done to deal with the problem. They might exclude flood damage by water table issues, until you have done this.

huckster

Just for further information about water table flooding. FOS link.

http://www.financial-ombudsman.org.uk/publications/ombudsman-news/10/oct-houshold-disasters.htm