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Rising damp on internal walls, neighbours house empty

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Can anyone help me please; we have a semi detached house with rising damp on 2 internal walls in the living room and dining room.

The elderly couple on the house next door passed away 5 years ago and the house hasn't been occupied since. It did go through probate and now belongs to the ladies brother, but unfortunately he hasn't been to the house for 3 years and we have been maintaining the garden and generally checking on the house.

There hasn't been any heating in the house for 4 years as the boiler broke and the brother wouldn't get it repaired; 3 years ago during the very cold winter there was a burst pipe in the kitchen and bathroom(which we think could have been leaking for a couple of days before we noticed it). We sorted it out and got the water turned off as the brother again wouldn't come round to sort it out.

We recently noticed our wallpaper peeling off and have had it confirmed by a damp expert that we have rising damp in both rooms, we took him next door and he advised that it was coming from there as they also have it.

We have been quoted £650.00 to get it treated, which means stripping all of the wallpaper and the wall being hacked away, treated and re-plastered (we have only just decorated in the dining room!!). He can't give is any guarantees and says it will come back if next door isn't treated.

Can anyone offer any advise on the following please:
Can we claim on our insurance for any of this work?
Is it worth doing if there aren't any guarantees?
Is there anything we can do about the owners lack of care?

I would really appreciate any help or advice that anyone can offer please?

Thanks & Regards
Julie

Comments

  • keystone
    keystone Posts: 10,916 Forumite
    If its on the party wall then its your problem just as much as theirs so you can forget the other side's "lack of care".

    Just because their walls are wet in there too it doesn't mean that their house is the source in yours.

    If it is rising damp then just hacking off the plaster and replastering isn't going to sort anything out.

    He won't give you any sort of guarantee because he knows that doing what he is suggesting won't solve the problem.

    Get another opinion.

    Cheers
    The difference between genius and stupidity is that genius has it's limits. - Einstein
  • Dukesy
    Dukesy Posts: 406 Forumite
    Having bought the 'problem house' in our area, I do sympathise with you - empty houses do suffer with all sorts of unpleasant issues, and obviously you're suffering as a result, which absolutely isn't fair.

    I am no expert on this, but don't councils have the ability to force the owners of empty homes to maintain them properly and put them back into circulation under certain circumstances? Might be worth giving your local council a call.
  • macman
    macman Posts: 53,129 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 10,000 Posts Name Dropper
    If the brother's neglect causes damage to your property then you can make a civil claim against him for damages.
    I don't understand why you have been maintaining his property at your expense?
    No free lunch, and no free laptop ;)
  • Hi there
    Thanks very much for taking the time to respond.

    Unfortunately it's a case of either we do what needs doing or the house falls into a further state and drags ours down with it, I think we'll probably have to get the council involved.

    Thanks again for your response.
    Best Regards

    macman wrote: »
    If the brother's neglect causes damage to your property then you can make a civil claim against him for damages.
    I don't understand why you have been maintaining his property at your expense?
  • Hi there
    Thanks very much for your response; sorry to hear about your house, it's a nightmare isn't it!!

    We'll probably have to get in touch with the council I think,

    Thanks again for your response
    Best Regards
    Dukesy wrote: »
    Having bought the 'problem house' in our area, I do sympathise with you - empty houses do suffer with all sorts of unpleasant issues, and obviously you're suffering as a result, which absolutely isn't fair.

    I am no expert on this, but don't councils have the ability to force the owners of empty homes to maintain them properly and put them back into circulation under certain circumstances? Might be worth giving your local council a call.
  • Dukesy
    Dukesy Posts: 406 Forumite
    edited 20 October 2013 at 5:37PM
    julie.1234 wrote: »
    Hi there
    Thanks very much for your response; sorry to hear about your house, it's a nightmare isn't it!!

    We'll probably have to get in touch with the council I think,

    Thanks again for your response
    Best Regards

    Don't be, we knew what we were buying, and got it super cheap as a result :) but yes, it is a nightmare - our place is still drying out after two years of airing and heating! Years of neglect are not easy to reverse :s

    Yeah, I would if I were you. Also, I know you don't want a mess next door, but stop looking after the garden and so on.
  • Errata
    Errata Posts: 38,230 Forumite
    10,000 Posts Combo Breaker
    Contact the Empty Properties officer at the council.
    .................:)....I'm smiling because I have no idea what's going on ...:)
  • Stalking this thread.

    We have just moved into a property that has been empty for 2 years and is relatively problem free but discovered that the house next door (we're a terrace) that we thought was just an unloved rental property, has actually been empty for about 10 years.

    Our survey found an area of damp on the party wall, probably due to the party chimney not being capped properly so this will need investigating.

    Like the previous poster we are still happy with our house but we don't want ongoing problems because of someone else's neglect. Although we will wait until we have party wall agreements for our extension before we look into it :-)
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