Escape of water claim on home insurance

numbercruncher

I wonder does anyone have any advice they could offer on the following: 
family member put claim in for damage caused by leaking shower, the water was starting to come through from under shower down through ceiling. Tesco Insurance sent their claims company out and they say she’s not covered as damage is the result of wear and tear and poor maintenance and that wear and tear is excluded from the policy. How can this be right when they didn’t know the shower was leaking until they saw the water come down through the ceiling? It seems then there is no point in having insurance. Would be grateful for any advice as they cannot afford to get this fixed themselves.

BarelySentientAI

Not knowing that something is leaking doesn't mean that the leak was not due to wear and tear.

Why did the shower leak?

Hoenir

Was anything actually leaking? 

Property ownership comes with maintenance costs. Insurance does not cover repairs etc. 

DullGreyGuy

numbercruncher said:

I wonder does anyone have any advice they could offer on the following: 
family member put claim in for damage caused by leaking shower, the water was starting to come through from under shower down through ceiling. Tesco Insurance sent their claims company out and they say she’s not covered as damage is the result of wear and tear and poor maintenance and that wear and tear is excluded from the policy. How can this be right when they didn’t know the shower was leaking until they saw the water come down through the ceiling? It seems then there is no point in having insurance. Would be grateful for any advice as they cannot afford to get this fixed themselves.

EoW is from fixed water systems, eg a burst pipe, it covers spontaneous events, eg you put a nail through a pipe, it isn't a substitution for home maintenance and with the exception of subsidence doesn't cover things that happen gradually overtime. 

Presumably the grout or sealant has failed so the water has been escaping for some time and hence they've declined. These would be maintenance issues and not covered by Home Insurance.