consolidation subsidance

frank12_2

hi i have made a subsidance insurance claim , gave the excess fee cheque, however the stiars are sloping to one side informed insurers and they said its due to historical.
Also more cracks have appeared in the front of house and insueres are saying this is a different claim so need another 1000 pound, said its consolidation subsidance.
Insurers said the rear of property was due to leaking drains and front of property is due to moisutre as the property is old, informed water company and they said no water is leaking from pipes, any ideas what to do and what consolidation subsidance is. thanks

G_M

Get yourself a structural engineer to do an independant report. Any argument with the insurer will need expert evidence.

Amphion

Good evening,

Consolidation subsidence is also known as settlement and is caused by the weight of the building squeezing the moisture out of the soil beneath the foundations. It makes the soil denser and stronger but the movement causes cracks in the building. Normally the effects of such movement will produce cracks no wider than 5mm.This is normal and happens in most buildings and therefore isn’t usually covered in subsidence insurance policies. Depending on the soil type, settlement can occur instantly or over a period of time.it is expected that settlement would be at its greatest within the first year or 2 of a buildings life and would normally stop after about 10 to 20 years .Settlement IS NOT SUBSIDANCE! Subsidence is the movement of the ground beneath a structures foundation caused by something other than the self-weight of the building.
You mentioned in your post that there is a history of subsidence. Is there any evidence of previous underpinning work at your property?
Obviously I haven’t surveyed your dwelling and have no idea of your ground conditions or type but it sounds like your property could (and I stress the word could) be suffering from what is known as differential settlement. This basically means that separate parts of your home are settling at different rates for whatever reason. Usually this occurs in older properties.

I recommend you get an independent survey done by a structural engineer and hopefully you can find what’s going on as I believe all the subsidence is linked. Should cost you between £350 and £600 for a report depending on where you live but in true moneysaving expert style shop around for the best price.:rotfl:
If you have any further questions just send me a message and I’d be happy to help.

Good Luck