Advice please! Subsidence caused by neighbour's extension?

starfluf

Jeepers_Creepers said:

ratechaser said:

And I thought Mr O'Reilly had retired...

Basil?! Where are you going with that gnome...?

Starfluf, it's hard to relate the inside and outside photos - any chance of wider shots to show where that damaged window frame is in relation to the extension, for example?

Regardless, however, you need to call Build Control right away and express your concerns about the standard of work, and the possibility that it's also caused damage to your home. That is a dreadful job, so bad that it cannot possibly have been 'passed', and I suspect that means that BC has not even been applied for at all. So lawd knows what the founds, for example, are like. 

The BCO will - once they've recovered from the shock - also want to check the inside of your house, and so should be able to figure out PDQ if there's a connection.

Then it's insurance time...

Lawdie.

hope this gives a rough idea.  Typical victorian terrace

m0bov

It’s pulling the rear wall down, it needs urgent structural support, your tenant will need temp accommodation during repair works. I hope you spoke with BC and insurance today. It’s going to be a huge repair job, good luck and keep us posted.

starfluf

m0bov said:

It’s pulling the rear wall down, it needs urgent structural support, your tenant will need temp accommodation during repair works. I hope you spoke with BC and insurance today. It’s going to be a huge repair job, good luck and keep us posted.  

We've emailed BC for advice today.  Not called insurance yet, just felt a bit overwhelmed with it all.  Yes will do - bit daunted so all support / advice is so appreciated. 

Jeepers_Creepers

Phone phone phone BCO. Ditto insurance.

I wonder if they might also have widened an opening through into that extension, and fitted a lintel to the same standard as their roofing work...

teachfast

I share the concerns about the safety of your tenant. This looks bad and urgent.

GrumpyDil

Op as JC has said that needs urgent investigation. Don't wait for your email to eventually be picked up, ring BC to discuss this with them. Also, as mentioned, ring your insurance company. 

m0bov

Have you spoken to next door? If they did the work they are about to be hit with a massive bill. Also, are you covered if you need to provide accommodation for your tenant?

GDB2222

Really, you don’t need advice from a bunch of amateurs on a forum. You need a surveyor to go round and give you a report. 

teachfast

GDB2222 said:

Really, you don’t need advice from a bunch of amateurs on a forum. You need a surveyor to go round and give you a report. 

The two are not mutually exclusive. Finding out some information before going into the discussion seems very sensible to me.

pinkteapot

starfluf said:

m0bov said:

It’s pulling the rear wall down, it needs urgent structural support, your tenant will need temp accommodation during repair works. I hope you spoke with BC and insurance today. It’s going to be a huge repair job, good luck and keep us posted.  

We've emailed BC for advice today.  Not called insurance yet, just felt a bit overwhelmed with it all.  Yes will do - bit daunted so all support / advice is so appreciated. 

You need to get on the phone urgently to both BC and your insurer. (When you phone BC, stress the urgency). 

You could also get a surveyor round yourself, but there's little point paying for your own inspections if the insurer will handle that. I'd want to though as the quickest way to find out exactly what's happening! (It may however be a structural engineer you need rather than a surveyor).

Don't say "subsidence" when you phone your insurer by the way. You don't know it's subsidence. If other posters are right that the extension is pulling the rear wall outwards then I don't think (?) that's subsidence. Point being, you don't want a subsidence claim on your history if you can avoid it. Just say that a neighbour's extension appears to have caused structural problems as significant cracks have suddenly appeared. Let their inspections determine exactly what the fault is.