Claiming for water damage caused by poor fitting

renzo

Hi

I bought a dishwasher from ao.com in April and paid the 25 quid to get it installed.

6 weeks later we had a plumber round doing some work and when he removed the kickplate in the kitchen the floor and kitchen units were soaking. He identified the leak as coming from the dishwasher inlet pipe, it basically wasn't tightened properly.

I complained to ao who asked me to provide a written statement from the plumber along with photos and 2 quotes to repair the damage. Sent these off August and then they came back saying they wanted an independent assessor to come round, no problem.

Report came back and the assessor is claiming the water damage is from the washing machine not the dishwasher they installed. Claim rejected.

I've been going back and forth for a few weeks now but basically they aren't willing to budge. They're using the report and saying there is nothing they can do further.

I'm obviously a bit annoyed by this, the damage to the house isn't severe but at least 2 units need replaced along with the lino and some floorboards but I'll have to foot the bill!

I've already contacted CAB who have given me advice on the kind of letter to write and also said chargeback could be an option further down the line. Any further advice on how I can try and resolve this would be great. Thank you

unholyangel

Chargeback wont be an option likely (there are only certain reasons you can do a chargeback), but if you paid by credit card then your card company are equally liable under section 75 of the consumer credit act - you have the same rights with them as the retailer and you do not have to exhaust all avenues with the retailer before approaching them.

Did your plumber put in his statement the leak was due to the dishwasher? If not might be worthwhile asking him to write a report detailing the specifics of the leak - send it along with your letter before action giving them one last chance.

If you paid by credit card, i'd try the card company before sending the LBA - if the card company refuse you can refer it to the financial ombudsman. So it gives you two extra "points" in which to "win" before having to take it to court.

renzo

Ok, thanks for clearing that up.

I submitted a written statement from the plumber that said the leak was from the dishwasher, this seems to have had no impact.