New house ground floor ceiling leaking from two bathrooms upstairs

technopersia

Hi,

I have completed purchasing a house 13 days ago and yesterday I discovered the main bathroom upstairs leaks from the shower. Today I discovered the ensuit shower also leaks through the ceiling into the kitchen. I was wondering whats the best approach to have it sorted (first property so my knowledge of procedures is limited).

There is building insurance in place and the fault was not flagged up by the full building survey. Is this something I can claim through the building insurance?

Insurance is with Halifax.

Any guidance would be greatly appreciated.

SmashedAvacado

Is it a new build or a mature house?
ie new to you or new to the world when you say "new"

tacpot12

Is the house brand new? If so, there should be a warranty in place from the builder, so you would need to approach them.

If the house is old, but new to you, you could check your building insurance policy to see if it covers you. If the policy isn't clear, call the insurer for advice, but make it clear that you are just wanting to check whether you are covered, and are not claiming on the policy yet.

You need to understand why the rooms are leaking and how much it will cost to rectify the problems. If the work is covered on your policy you could make a claim, but the insurer might put your premium up the following year, so if the cost is small, I would be inclined to pay for the repairs myself.

need_an_answer

What is the extent of the damage?

Sometimes the cost to fix the actual leak is minimal,it could be that its just a case of resealing the shower enclosures and allowing everything to dry out.

You would need to check your excesses for your policy but dependant on how long the leak has festered you may find it cheaper not to go down the insurance route.

SmashedAvacado

insurance might cover the damage but not the repair if you see what i mean
you will likely have an excess also
you probably have an obligation to notify them asap. Take photos etc

If the building is new, then call the builders and threaten social media carnage unless they come and sort it out properly

G_M

Other factors to consider:


* quite likely insurance will not include a pre-existing problem. ie a leak that was already there when took out the policy........
* just informing them (even without claiming) can go on your history and affect future premiums
* what is your excess?
* what is the estimated repair cost 1) to the ceiling and 2) to the showers?

technopersia

Thank you All,

The house was built in the 1970s and is an ex council building. The shower and baths were modified/added by the previous seller. I suspect the issue is the connectors of the drain pipe. It could be as simple as both outlet connections are leaking to the main drain pipe is leaking somewhere in between which will involve intrusive searches.

My insurance only covers damage caused by the leak. I noticed plumbing insurance like the British Gas ones have a 28 day limit before claims. I think I'm going to investigate the bath myself first as is the simplest, if simple leak I can fix it however if not will require plumbers. I am also going to get a friend who is an extremely experienced Civil Engineer too look at approach if a search for the leak is required.

Any other recommendations?

MovingForwards

Get a plumber in to look at the leak and sort it out?