Botched buildings Insurance repair

finnvanb

Is there a statute of limitations on a repair carried out by a company on behalf a buildings insurance provider? My parents had a repair carried out around 25 years ago due to dry rot and, for a significant period since, there has been a damp smell that we couldn't put our fingers on the source of. Long story short they decided to replace the bathroom after the bath began to sink at one corner and I have discovered a waste pipe was not connected. I have taken photos of what I discovered just incase, though I feel it's now been too long. There is no access under the floor unless doing work such as this to replace flooring etc. 

Mark_d

25 years is a ridiculously long time to let pass if the problem was indeed caused that long ago.

finnvanb

@Mark_d I totally agree and that's why I stated it in my original post. However, there's no access under the floor and to do so would cause a huge amount of upheaval (such as ripping a bathroom out) to see what, if anything, was going on. Just looking for a bit of advice as to best course of action, if any.

user1977

Same statute of limitations as for anything else, plus the practical difficulties of how on earth you prove that nothing else relevant has happened in the past 25 years. Does the "guilty" party even still exist?

MyRealNameToo

finnvanb said:

Is there a statute of limitations on a repair carried out by a company on behalf a buildings insurance provider? My parents had a repair carried out around 25 years ago due to dry rot and, for a significant period since, there has been a damp smell that we couldn't put our fingers on the source of. Long story short they decided to replace the bathroom after the bath began to sink at one corner and I have discovered a waste pipe was not connected. I have taken photos of what I discovered just incase, though I feel it's now been too long. There is no access under the floor unless doing work such as this to replace flooring etc. 

Statute of limitations is 6 years as you are alleging a breach of contract. 

Can they even remember if the insurer paid them and they instructed their own person or if the insurer directly instructed the firm? Do they remember who the firm was? Are they even still trading?