am i covered in my policy drain collapse

Tumtitums

Hello i have been told i have a collapsed drain and i am thinking of claiming on my insurance to pay for it. the insurance document says  my policy covers

• Accidental damage to underground drains, pipes,cables and tanks

the problem is that i have no idea what caused the drain to collapse and when this happened. It may have happened before i even moved into the property according to the drain surveyor so how can i provide evidence it was accidental though i don't think anyone would deliberately damage it

Do you think the insurance will pay for the cost to repair ?

Ayr_Rage

I reckon the cost will be yours unless you can prove someone working in the area has caused accidental damage.

DullGreyGuy

Most home insurance is written on an insured perils basis which means it's up to you to demonstrate that the damage is a result of fire, flood, accident damage etc. If you cannot then there is no cover.

You could put in a claim but potentially get it rejected either on it being pre-existing damage or it just being a maintenance issue or tree roots etc. Still means you have to declare the claim for the next 5 years and will be down to 0 years since your last claim. 

Alternatively you can pay for another drain company to look at it and hope for a more definitive set of answers and decide based on that.

What's the quote for repair? What's your policy excess?

Aretnap

Tumtitums said:

...so how can i provide evidence it was accidental though i don't think anyone would deliberately damage it.

Accidental damage would mean that it was unintentional damage resulting from a specific one-off event - like digging in the garden and accidentally whacking the pipe with a spade or similar. It's not just a case of it not being deliberate damage - things like wear and tear or decay over a long period of time caused by tree roots would not be covered as accidental damage.

So unless you can tie the damage to a particular event, you are probably out of luck as far as your insurance goes.

Sleepysophie

Some drainage systems are classed as "public" and some are "private". If its private they usually suggest you insure these separately or as an "add on" to your home insurance as a repair can be expensive. If its public then the local water company will help you with this repair (they will complete and pay for the repair in fact, if it is public). Just because it is in the boundary of your property, is not what gives it its definition of private or pubic, its to do with where the flow goes from and to. 
The water company will be able to advise. When I worked for a water company we were able to bring up plans whilst we were talking to the customer on the phone, so they should be able to tell you quite quickly. The person on the call will tell you honestly as they have no motivation to deceive you. 

MikeJXE

The first thing you should do is prove it is your responsibility or someone else's 

Tumtitums

Thank you for the replies. The damage is in my property as i have previously had the water company out and they have said that there is no problem with their sewer drainage system. 

I'm still waiting for the written report and a quote for the work. One of the other things i am finding is that no other drainage company will come out for free to give a quote. Either they all charge or they ask me to send the CCTV report  and they will quote based on that . 

I don't want to approach the insurance company as im sure they increased my premium this year because i called them to say my laptop may be broken. Its still functioning but they noted the calls to them on their system even though i didn't make a claim and was just asking if i was covered

DullGreyGuy

Tumtitums said:

they noted the calls to them on their system even though i didn't make a claim and was just asking if i was covered

Yes, in most insurances you have to declare all potential losses irrespective of if you claim or not... most people "forget" to mention the ones not claimed for and hence insurers take an opportunity to capture any such event that presents itself