Insurance for chimney falling through ceiling due to poor workmanship / maintenance

F37A

propertyrental said:

F37A said:

Hi 

Can you get insurance for the above. Alot of insurers label as wear and tear and exclude paying out for it. 

Thanks

Do you mean before or after the chimney collapse? If before, no insurer will ask about the chimney, or insure it separately, but will ask generally if the property is in a good state of repair, or if works are planned.

If the chimney collapsed during/after repair, the builder/roofer would claim on their professional insurance and compensate the client from that.

i.e plan to get insurance before chimney collapse to protect against collapse. Ok so bad maintenance on the property means chimney could fall through roof and so no way to protect pre purchase?

k12479

F37A said:

propertyrental said:

F37A said:

Hi 

Can you get insurance for the above. Alot of insurers label as wear and tear and exclude paying out for it. 

Thanks

Do you mean before or after the chimney collapse? If before, no insurer will ask about the chimney, or insure it separately, but will ask generally if the property is in a good state of repair, or if works are planned.

If the chimney collapsed during/after repair, the builder/roofer would claim on their professional insurance and compensate the client from that.

i.e plan to get insurance before chimney collapse to protect against collapse. Ok so bad maintenance on the property means chimney could fall through roof and so no way to protect pre purchase?

Yes there is, reduce your offer/bid by the potential costs of rectifying the issue.

doodling

Hi,

F37A said:

propertyrental said:

F37A said:

Hi 

Can you get insurance for the above. Alot of insurers label as wear and tear and exclude paying out for it. 

Thanks

Do you mean before or after the chimney collapse? If before, no insurer will ask about the chimney, or insure it separately, but will ask generally if the property is in a good state of repair, or if works are planned.

If the chimney collapsed during/after repair, the builder/roofer would claim on their professional insurance and compensate the client from that.

i.e plan to get insurance before chimney collapse to protect against collapse. Ok so bad maintenance on the property means chimney could fall through roof and so no way to protect pre purchase?

Not really.  If the chimney is in a "may fall down any second" state then the best strategy would be to arrange with the vendor to have access to have it temporarily taken down as soon as you have completed (or exchanged contracts if the vendor will allow it).

An insurer will generally not cover something that is likely to happen (or, if they do, will make sure they make money on the deal so the premium will be near the value of any claim you might make).

eddddy

F37A said:

i.e plan to get insurance before chimney collapse to protect against collapse. Ok so bad maintenance on the property means chimney could fall through roof and so no way to protect pre purchase?

I think you still might not have grasped how buildings insurance works, and what it covers.

Here's a typical insurance policy from Aviva. Maybe look in particular at these pages:

Page 12: Buildings Section - What is covered?
Page 11: General Exclusions
Page 14: Buildings Section - What's not covered?

https://www.online.aviva.co.uk/StaticDocsAV/Home_wording_default_v2.pdf



(If you are worried about the chimney collapsing, you should aim to get a contractor in as soon as possible after completion to make it safe.

Or even see if the seller will agree to let your contractor make the chimney safe before completion.)

NameUnavailable

F37A said:

propertyrental said:

F37A said:

Hi 

Can you get insurance for the above. Alot of insurers label as wear and tear and exclude paying out for it. 

Thanks

Do you mean before or after the chimney collapse? If before, no insurer will ask about the chimney, or insure it separately, but will ask generally if the property is in a good state of repair, or if works are planned.

If the chimney collapsed during/after repair, the builder/roofer would claim on their professional insurance and compensate the client from that.

i.e plan to get insurance before chimney collapse to protect against collapse. Ok so bad maintenance on the property means chimney could fall through roof and so no way to protect pre purchase?

Insurance is to protect against unexpected events. Like a flood, or something dropping out of the sky, etc.

You are worried about the chimney falling into the house presumably because it looks like it's a problem - so it's something you expect might happen. You need to get the chimney repaired so it's in good order an no longer a worry.

No insurance policy will pay out for what should be routine maintenance.

GDB2222

If it’s survived the winter storms, it will stay up for a few weeks until you demolish and rebuild it.