Our Septic tank was not installed correctly and has now collapsed

Joe90dude

Hi all! 

I am looking for a bit of advice here.

We are part of a small community and we have a shared septic tank (4 houses). The septic tank is located in a privately owned field and was installed by the developer.

The Septic tank has recently COLLAPSED!! 

I have had 3 tradesmen come to review the septic tank disaster and all have stated that its been installed incorrectly *should have been concreted in due to the lay of the land and it has not.

I have had quotes ranging from £10000 - £24000

Now our house guarantee expired on 27/08/21 (typical) and the developer is having nothing to do with it. I have sourced documents signed off by building control stating the build is satisfactorily ( now im assuming this would have included the septic tank ) 

Where do we stand with this? Should the developer be held accountable? 

Should the developer hold documents showing how the septic tank is installed.

Should we proceed to claim this through court from either the developer due to the installation being incorrect? or is it just best to take the hit and pay the repair between us (and/or potential house insurance claim)

Looking forward to replies on this as im at my witts end.

Thanks

Section62

Joe90dude said:

We are part of a small community and we have a shared septic tank (4 houses). The septic tank is located in a privately owned field and was installed by the developer.

The Septic tank has recently COLLAPSED!! 

I have had 3 tradesmen come to review the septic tank disaster and all have stated that its been installed incorrectly *should have been concreted in due to the lay of the land and it has not.

Could you explain the BiB a bit more - with any type of below ground structure the soil type and water table level will dictate the installation/construction method... are you saying the tradesmen are something like the problem is due to the ground sloping or similar?

What's the situation with the tank and the field?  Is there a legal agreement which allows the use of the land for that purpose? Or does the field belong to one of the properties?

Also, is the actual cause of failure that it has 'collapsed', or is it something else?  I'm assuming they used a prefabricated GRP (or similar) tank rather than constructed it in-situ.

Joe90dude

Hi

The soil is Loamy/Clay - therefore load-baring on the tank when wet. (which is Scotland is excessive) 

The tank has been installed with a peat gravel surround - where I have been advised the tank should have been installed with a concrete surround due to the ground. 

The field is owned by the developer who is in the process of selling the field. 

The tank thats been installed is a fibreglass tank - the failure is due to the way the tank has been placed in the ground with no protection from the loadbearing ground... 

Thanks

Ganga

Have you contacted the developer and asked him how they intend to repair it? yes it is technically out of warranty but surely it should last longer than it has so they must carry some responsibility along with the installer .

tacpot12

If you have home insurance, check to see if you have legal expenses cover. If you do, call the Legal Helpline and suggest that your co-owners do the same. The legal teams provided by the insurers will be able to look into whether there is a way to force or encourage the developer to make a contribution to the replacement. 

It's not clear from your post how long the septic tank has been installed, but however long it has been installed means that you have had some use out of it, and the developer may be able to avoid paying the full cost of replacement because you have had some use out of the tank that they installed. 

If they contributed 50% of the cost, and four householders paid the rest it would 'only' cost you £3000 (worst case). Sometimes proposing a settlement figure that is reasonable can persuade someone to settle when otherwise their inclination is to dig their heels in. 

nimbo

If they are trying to sell the land then they may have some vested interest in it. It being blighted by a failing septic tank? 

I mean the sales pitch of look at this lovely field for development - ‘just as a heads up there’s a septic tank here - careful of your boots and maybe stand downwind as it’s failing’

may put off prospective purchasers. 

Over there is a well maintained septic tank that’s been looked over and serviced recently - sounds a better sales patter. 

Section62

nimbo said:

If they are trying to sell the land then they may have some vested interest in it. It being blighted by a failing septic tank? 

I mean the sales pitch of look at this lovely field for development - ‘just as a heads up there’s a septic tank here - careful of your boots and maybe stand downwind as it’s failing’

may put off prospective purchasers. 

Over there is a well maintained septic tank that’s been looked over and serviced recently - sounds a better sales patter. 

If there's a legal agreement that allows the septic tank to be on the field, you'd expect the agreement to include something about maintenance - both to ensure it was well maintained so it doesn't become a nuisance for the field owner, and to allow the tank owners access to carry out maintenance/replacement.

Either way, it is the responsibility of the tank owners/users to ensure it is safe and properly maintained. And the Environment Agency (or equivalent) will almost certainly take enforcement action if you allowed your septic tank to fail to the point where it might put off prospective purchasers of the land it is sited on. Particularly if that land belongs to someone else already and they kick up enough fuss with the EA about any lack of action re maintenance/repair.

Section62

Joe90dude said:

The soil is Loamy/Clay - therefore load-baring on the tank when wet. (which is Scotland is excessive) 

The tank has been installed with a peat gravel surround - where I have been advised the tank should have been installed with a concrete surround due to the ground. 

The field is owned by the developer who is in the process of selling the field. 

The tank thats been installed is a fibreglass tank - the failure is due to the way the tank has been placed in the ground with no protection from the loadbearing ground... 

Ok, who was it who gave you this advice? Was it a professional you were paying for an independent opinion, or someone quoting to install a new system?

How exactly has the tank failed? Has it split? Is there a hole in it? Has all the ground above it fallen into the bottom?  A picture would help.


Installation should have been done in accordance with the manufacturers instructions, which would probably include using concrete backfill, placed in layers and carefully compacted.

But the tank failing due to loadbearing wet clay doesn't entirely ring true.  Clay soils tend to be cohesive and relatively self-supporting.  Plastics drainage tend to fail due to point loads or a lack of side support - both of which are why the backfilling has to be done carefully and with the correct materials.

To be able to make a successful claim against anyone I think you will need a technical explanation of what has gone wrong which doesn't allow the party you are claiming against to pass the blame onto someone else.