water mains leak in flat- who is responsible?

eebyegum

hello all,
i own a pupose built flat on the ground floor with two other flats above mine.
i recently found soaking carpets and peeling paint on the skirting boards in the hallway. i then discovered water seeping UP from the concrete floor in my airing cupboard where the 3 rising water mains for my flat and the two flats above comes through the floor and upwards to my stopcock and through the ceiling to the other flats.
i had an emergency plumber come out and he had to hire specialist tools to break through the concrete floor around the rising mains to reveal that the plastic water pipe to my own flat had a kink in it that was leeking. the pipes to the other flats were also kinked but not leaking. it appears the concrete had been sealing the pipe for 40 odd years until the water pressure finally worked a way through!!
my question is, who should be responsible for the cost of this repair?
the management company who take my service charge every month dont want to know and say the buildings block insurance wont cover it as it in my property.

i have separate insurance myself but that won't cover leaking pipes either.

obviously, the flats above would never have this problem, so it feels a little unfair that i, for being on the ground floor have to foot all the bill. i know in this instance it was infact my own mains pipe leaking. but what if it had been the pipe to another flat flooding my own?

any thoughts on this please would be welcomed.

thanks

CashStrapped

If it is a flat, and you are a leaseholder.....you need to check your lease. It should stipulate who is responsible for what.

If you need help determining that, contact LEASE (leashold advisory service)who offer a free initial telephone consultation. It is a government backed advisory service for leaseholders.

https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/leasehold-advisory-service

But....do your homework before hand. Don't waste the free consultation. Go through your lease with a fine tooth-comb. Highlight the sections you think are relevant. Write down exactly where the leak is in the property. Do you know if this is the original supply pipe i.e there when the whole place was built? If it is an pre-existing fault, you may have another angle to go on. The fact other flats have a kink, supports this claim.

Do you have your own insurance? It may come down to your insurers claiming off the freeholders insurance.

Normally, the supply pipe from the mains connection on the street to your property is your responsibility. But, as it is a leasehold flat, it may or may not. This is because the freeholder is responsible for the structure. If something is part of the structure, then it may be the freeholders responsibility.

For example, you can have the odd situation where the window frames are technically owned by the freeholder, but the glass is your responsibility.

Either way, it should be dealt with in your lease.

footyguy

eebyegum wrote: »

hello all,
i own a pupose built flat on the ground floor with two other flats above mine.
i recently found soaking carpets and peeling paint on the skirting boards in the hallway. i then discovered water seeping UP from the concrete floor in my airing cupboard where the 3 rising water mains for my flat and the two flats above comes through the floor and upwards to my stopcock and through the ceiling to the other flats.
i had an emergency plumber come out and he had to hire specialist tools to break through the concrete floor around the rising mains to reveal that the plastic water pipe to my own flat had a kink in it that was leeking. the pipes to the other flats were also kinked but not leaking. it appears the concrete had been sealing the pipe for 40 odd years until the water pressure finally worked a way through!!
my question is, who should be responsible for the cost of this repair?
the management company who take my service charge every month dont want to know and say the buildings block insurance wont cover it as it in my property.

i have separate insurance myself but that won't cover leaking pipes either.

obviously, the flats above would never have this problem, so it feels a little unfair that i, for being on the ground floor have to foot all the bill. i know in this instance it was infact my own mains pipe leaking. but what if it had been the pipe to another flat flooding my own?

any thoughts on this please would be welcomed.

thanks

Contact the building insurer directly - I will be amazed if there is no cover for damage caused by such loss of water.

Edit: To clarify, buildings insurance does not usually cover the repair itself, but does usually cover the cost of repairing damage to the building caused by the water leaking.

I agree with the above post - your lease should specify who is responsible for things.

If the incoming water supply is not mentioned, then I'm afraid it will be down to you. Flats should have their own water supply (not shared with anyone else), and in the case of purpose built ones, I'd be amazed if they don't. It's needed, amongst other reasons, for metering puposes (where a meter is fitted, or one is requested)