Buildings Insurance about to be disputed

whitepj

Hi All. Nightmare scenario here -- I'd appreciate any helpful suggestions of what to do next...
Wife and I have had to relocate. Consequently, she lives down south, and I live in the old house. Weekdays I'm with her and our child, weekends I am fixing a garden wall and drain at the old house before we can afford to sell it.

About a month ago, we went on holiday. I was away from old house for 3 weeks. During this time, a pipe in the loft burst. Water spread horizontally enough to damage 2 bedroom ceilings, then further spread horizontally because of the underlay on the bedroom floor, resulting in an even larger area of damage downstairs. So this is a major claim. Date of notification: 21st August.

Loss Adjuster has been appointed by insurance company. He's been very good so far.


His appointed builders (Forshaw Group), however, have not been. It took over a week for them to even contact me, and about 3 weeks to arrange to bring in drying equipment. (To be honest, the place still smells damp, and I'm not sure if they have had them operating for any decent length of time).
They have started to strip away the damaged ceilings, plaster, and flooring. Downstairs now almost completely gutted, upstairs next...
Then yesterday, they sent a photo and assessment of what caused the problem: A split in the pipe feeding the C/H header tank. The accompanying text read:
"It appears that the copper feed pipe within the loft space has burst due to frost/freeze conditions."

!!!!!!? In the middle of summer?! Seriously?!!

So, I visit the site over the weekend (as currently uninhabitable). No doubt about the location of the water leak. But I am now panicking over:
1) large growths of fungi rapidly appearing on brickwork and joists
2) Loss Adjuster has halted all work pending assessment from insurers, since it has been "154 days after the most recent date when there was a severe frost", and therefore outside of policy.

Is there a procedure I can invoke to bring in a specialist in order to contradict the opinion of Forshaws? There is no way this is "frost" damage, and it certainly hasn't been leaking for more than the time I've been away. For a start, it's a semi, and the neighbour would have complained a lot earlier than she did (who did get affected by mould on the wall about 2 weeks after the leak).

Thanks.

silvercar

You need to appoint a loss assessor to act for you.

whitepj

Thanks silvercar.
Any advice on how I find a good one?

Am I going to be liable for paying their fee in all circumstances?
Cheers

whitepj

(Giving up trying to edit -- sorry)

There is this thread (to which I can't post a link):
THIS-SITE/showthread.php?t=5404642


However, I've just been on to the FCA site, and there are no individuals listed.
There are a very limited number of companies (15) -- none in our area. Unless I am searching under the wrong term..

eddddy

Essentially, you need an 'expert' to investigate the leak - and hopefully find the cause and confirm that it's not due to frost damage.

If you instruct a loss assessor, they might then look for a plumbing and heating expert to investigate what caused the leak.

But... you could look for your own expert if you prefer. For example you could google 'plumbing and heating expert witness'.

You can then forward a copy of the expert's report to your insurer.

Blibble

Be careful if appointing an independent loss assessor, as they need paying somehow and this will come out of your settlement of the claim.

I'd suggest independently researching somebody local & independent, e.g., plumbing engineer, to produce a cause of damage / leak report or similar.

Chickenlips

You could ask the advice of a local plumber.

Your insurers may appoint a forensics team to review if they suspect you have been dishonest about the occupancy of the property.

Pipes in the loft are outside of the heat envelope of the property, meaning they are more likely to burst during cold weather. A similar issue can be caused in periods of extreme heat, as the metal expands.

Are you staying at the house as often as the policy states? Can you evidence this by way of utility bills? Do you still have your post sent to the house? Irrespectiveof cause, your insurers will now be reviewing the validity of policy. They likely suspect that you have not been meeting their minimum period of occupancy (typically 180 days of the year or no more than 30 days unoccupied in a row).

The reason many insurers do not cover unoccupied properties for escape of water claims is because they are far more common and the damage much more extensive due to the delay in discovery. On unoccupied properties, FLEA cover is normally granted (fire, lightning, earthquake, and aeroplane).

It may well have started off as a small split in March, which gradually grew worse over time. There could have been a small leak, which grew (if not due to heat).

Insurers hire experts who are good at what they do. If you've not been entirely honest previously (and I'm not calling you a liar) you may want to be upfront now as it will likely come out. Bare in mind that if they can prove you've not been entirely truthful, all costs incurred to date could be passed to you. This is especially true if your insurers can prove they would not have accepted your policy based on the current facts.

In my experience, loft based escape of waters rarely spread to the neighbouring property. I can't read your post whilst writing this, but has your neighbour stated that they have an ingress of water from your property? If not, saying your neighbour would have said something wouldn't be a solid argument.

An assessor won't be able to determine the cause of damage, but may be able to appoint a specialist. The word of an assessor would not contradict a plumbing specialist (much like the adjuster would need a specialist to back up their findings). It is also worth noting that if your claim were delayed due to negotiation of costs (some but not all assessors submit inflated costs as they take a cut), your insurers are not liable for the costs exceeding the damage as is.

Under your policy, you likely have a duty to mitigate your loss. This means that whilst the claim is being reviewed, you do have a duty to try and minimise damage. You may wish to contact local firms to see if anything can be done to stabilise conditions in your property whilst the claim is under review.