subsidence - when do you have to declare it to insurer?

evosy1978

Hello all.

Ive had a survey on a property done and it said there had been some subsidence.

My mortgage lenders evaluation stated their had been some "structural movement" and was unlikely to move again, but never said the word subsidence.

If id not had my survey done then i would never had come across the word subsidence.

So when applying for insurance would "structural movement" be defined as subsidence. Would i have to declare these words "structural movement" to the insurer.

Thanks

lesley1960

My son has the same problem , they have put an offer in on a house, the lenders surveyor has said more or less the same thing .We advised him to be honest with any potential insurance company , no one will insure the house.

mattymoo

Mortgage lender surveyor has cited structural movement but this is a general term covering several types of movement.
As well as subsidence you can have landslip (sloping sites normally), heave and settlement (usually on new properties as they bed down).
Only subsidence and landslip (I think) are normally covered by insurance. Ask your surveyor to clarify if it is subsidence and what he thought may have caused it - e.g. tree root damage, old mine workings, proximity to a river etc.

roger_c

I have had some 'movement' in the building I am in. We got a survey done before purchasing which said there had been some 'structural movement' in the past but nothing unexpected of a building of this age.

The building has since then 'moved' again, supposedly sinking and twisting, according to the loss adjustor (that's the insurance company's surveyor person) who came out when I decided to make a claim to get it sorted he said "any surveyor worth their salt in the future would write on any prospective buyer's survey exactly as was written on yours" and therefore the property should be devalued. He didn't call it subsidence but that's what I presume this is. I have since then been told that no other insurance company will take me on while i'm still in this building, but I've not tried yet to move insurance companies yet and don't plan to.

I am with NFU Mutual btw, and the excess was £500 which is alot less than other insurance companies according to the loss adjustor (he does work for other insurance companies as he works for a surveying company).

MRSTITTLEMOUSE

We had trouble getting insurance as we have a mine shaft entry on the other side of the road about twenty yards away.The initial survey stated there was evidence of movement but that it was longstanding and unlikely to re-occur.We had an advanced mining survey done and it turns out the National Coal Board will take resonsibility if anything happens.
This satisfied the insurers, all I had to do was send the mining report to them.The premium was no different to my other house which was not in a similar situation.
By the way, we were told by the mortgage company that the mortgage would not be issued if it was not proved that the insurer was aware of the long standing subsidence and mine entry.It is always best to be honest with insurers,surely the people selling will have insurance so ask what the situation is with them.