Dry rot from neighbouring property

Wee_Murphy

Hi I’ve only posted once before so please bear with me.
I live in a terraced stone cottage. My neighbour has told me that under her floor near to the wall she and I share, is a very large outbreak of dry rot. Workmen have found that her mains water supply which is under her floor has been leaking quite badly probably for years. It has now spread all across the ground floor of her house. She informed me that the workmen could hear a hissing sound from under the floor but as she only has partial hearing she could not hear it. Her insurance company originally would not cover her but now that a leak has been found they are coming back to reassess.
Two years ago I had an outbreak of dry rot almost straight through the wall and it cost me around £3000 to repair. I did not make an insurance claim as I knew I would not be covered. The company who carried out my repairs could not find the source of dampness but as it is an old house they put it down to age of the property.

The previous owner of next door told me about a hissing sound under the floor of his house around 4 years ago. He had it checked for a gas leak and it was found to be in order. The gas people only used detection equipment and did not lift the floor.

At the time of my dry rot I informed the previous owner and asked he check his property thoroughly. He was not pleased as he said he was putting his house on the market. He said he couldn’t see anything wrong but I don’t know how thoroughly he checked.

Bottom line is I am worried as this outbreak is huge. It’s about 50cm away from the wall she and I share and although I had treatment done at the time it did not extend this far. Therefore this may make any guarantee from the treatment specialist invalid as the leak has been going on for years and even after treatment was still present.

If the dry rot appears on my side I’m wondering should I contact my own insurance company? Also the affected area should be treated 1m out from the outbreak which brings you in to my property. I can’t afford to pay for this. Would my insurance pay as the water is coming from next door? Any advice greatly appreciated as I am reallly worried about this and don’t know what to do. Thank you

[Deleted User]

Your insurance should cover it. It doesn't matter where the water is coming from, although of course they will want the leak to be fixed before repairing your property.

It's similar to the common case where there is a leak in a flat and the flats under it get water damage too. They all have to claim on their own insurance, unless there is really clear negligence that caused the leak.

Wee_Murphy

Thanks [DELETED USER]. I’m really worried about this as another outbreak would almost bankrupt me! I will give my insurance company a call to let them know about the situation. Thanks again for your reply.