Discovered Subsidence, straight away after moving into new house.

AdrianC

macman said:

...you have less consumer protection than when you buy a pint of milk at the corner shop.

Not many people buy second-hand milk from private sellers.

ProDave

Another way to tackle this is fill in the cracks, fix the sticking door, paint it all.  If the cracks re appear, you have a problem.  If they don't it was just settlement and it has finished settling.

Marshaltown

OP the Loss Adjuster will either accept or repudiate your claim. Worst case scenario, assuming subsidence is ACTUALLY the problem, the claim is classed as pre-inception damage and repudiated. Generally subsidence is caused by leaking drains and/or trees and is typically not too difficult to remedy. But occasionally it can be a big problem thats why mortgage lenders have such an aversion to it. It's highly unlikely the house will collapse and disappear into oblivion. 

Davesnave

Jumblebumble said:

sophiallbn said:

Hi I’m hoping someone out there can help us with this rubbish situation We have found ourselves in.

We have cracks in the door frames, window ledges and skirting boards. We have 3 doors in total to the extension that do not open properly, one struggles to close, one catches on the side and bottom of the door and is out of upright, and another which struggles to close unless it’s slightly lifted. 

We bought our first property January 2020. We were told that our lenders would carry out a survey, so we never paid for a surveyor privately. As first time buyers, obviously our knowledge of this was a little off.

3 days before we were due to exchange, our solicitors informed us that the extension to the property was not signed off by building control. The extension was built in 2013, and since then had been sold. As we were practically homeless after already giving in the keys to our rented flat, we didn’t take it seriously and moved in anyway, as we were on honeymoon at this point and had no home to return to.

We 100% have subsidence in the extension, which we noticed immediately after moving in. When viewing the house, none of this was noticed. Not because it was I missed as such, but because the previous owner was full of clutter, and obviously hid the cracks very well. 

So trying to cut a very long story short, we have now contacted the insurance company who are sending a adjuster around this week, but I was wondering if anyone knows what the outcome will be? Could we claim money from the previous owner? Could we claim money from our lenders who did not pick this up? Any advice and help would be appreciated! 

The vendor is likely to tell you to do one.

Love it! Such a way with words. I bet you're really fun when you talk dirty too!

hazyjo

**ZOMBIE THREAD ALERT**

Possible spammer. Will report so they can keep an eye out.

AlexMac

Well spotted hazyjo; although as the previous poster ressurected a month-old post one assumes the OP has now fixed their problem, or even better, hopefully been told that there is no longer active movement in what was already a ten-year old extension?  Although it would have been nice of them to tell all you helpful people the outcome...?

Ozzig

AlexMac said:

Well spotted hazyjo; although as the previous poster ressurected a month-old post one assumes the OP has now fixed their problem, or even better, hopefully been told that there is no longer active movement in what was already a ten-year old extension?  Although it would have been nice of them to tell all you helpful people the outcome...?

I agree with AlexMac, it's like finding someone has ripped the last page from your library book.

We'd all like a happy ending, but I would settle for just an ending rather than nothing

AlexMac

OK; no sign of the OP? Oh well, it looks like I’ll have to supply my own happy ending;

… about a house I once sold, on a hill in London, in an area which had seen some movement and settlement, even in its period properties, during the very hot dry summer of 1976 (?) ten or so years previously. And where, as I learned from the neighbour, a crack had opened up in the party wall, so wide that her mum could chat to the owner of mine in the hallway, next door, after a WWII doodlebug landed nearby! 

So when a diagonal crack opened upon the back corner of my (original) rear extension, shortly before I wanted to sell, I panicked. 

Got my own surveyor in (rather than the insurer, who, based on a chum’s experience, would have immediately stuck me with a Whopping excess?) and was much reassured when he gave me the all clear; “hack off the render, tack on some expanded galvanised mesh, re-render and Bob’s yer auntie”!

I let the masonry dry, got up a ladder and painted the rear extension so the repair didn’t stand out (I was almost 40 years younger) and there it was; Happy ending.  

Well; happy-ish? The booger who bought it gazundered me, miserable sad that he was. But I just wanted to move on to the loving arms of my immorata- so I was OK. 

Good enuff for you OzzieGal?

[Deleted User]

You can ask stop putting the boot in now. The OP isn't going to come back for more abuse.

Thanks to the ones who were nice.