Homeowners urged to check their policy terms and follow simple guidelines
‘Keeping up with the Jones’s’ is a must for some people, yet insurer Congregational & General is warning that changing fashions in the home can contribute to the industry’s biggest single cause of claims – escape of water – which continues to increase each year*.
With one in six of its home-related claims linked to man-made ‘escape of water’, the home insurer says that the increased demand for luxuries, as well as evolving interior designs, are having a detrimental effect on homes.
The company is advising that the installation of ‘must have’ facilities like wet rooms and additional bathrooms can cause unforeseen damage to properties when fitted incorrectly. Coupled with more conventional causes such as leaking appliances or showers and burst pipes, these are contributing towards the growing number and size of claims.
Consequently, with the UK experiencing plummeting temperatures at the start of the New Year and the increased likelihood of frozen pipes, the company is urging homeowners to follow some simple guidelines to help prevent damage and ensure they are covered should an incident occur.
Margaret Slater, Marketing Manager at Congregational, said: “There are a number of different causes of damage from the escape of water – most commonly failed plumbing or inadequate DIY. However, less obvious factors like multiple bathrooms or poorly sealed wet rooms are a major issue too – often a result of installing facilities in unsuitable buildings or from poor workmanship.
“It is not just the cost of repairing the source of the problem that needs covering. We may also have to consider replacing items that have been ruined by standing water.”
Additionally, some homeowners aren’t fully aware of what their insurance policy covers or misinterpret it. Claims may not be paid if, for example, damage is caused whilst a property is unoccupied for more than 30 days or if a homeowner fails to investigate a leak, which develops over a period of time. This is known as ‘gradually operating cause’.
Margaret continued: “Damage caused by escape of water in the home is generally covered as standard by most insurance companies, but as well as ensuring people check their policy details, we want to help homeowners prevent any unnecessary inconvenience by following a few simple guidelines.”
Top tips
- Get a professional plumber to carry out work if you are unsure, rather than trying to do it yourself
- If you are installing a wet room or additional bathroom in your home, check that the current infrastructure you have in place can cope with the new facilities
- If you spot a leak or drip, deal with it as soon as possible. You may find that the damage it causes over a period of time is not covered under the ‘gradually operating cause’
- If your home is going to be unoccupied for more than 30 consecutive days contact your insurers to ensure you are covered
- If going away on holiday get your property checked regularly by friends or family
- Leave interior doors and loft accesses open so that warm air circulates around the home
- Check your pipes and tanks to ensure they are in a good state of repair and fully lag all pipes and tanks to prevent freezing
- In cold weather leave your heating on low to prevent freezing. Alternatively, if your home is to be unoccupied for more than three days, consider draining down the water system – leaving taps open and all heating systems and other water heating installations turned off
- Loft insulation should be laid on top of pipes, so check there isn’t any loft insulation underneath them as this would prevent rising heat reaching them
- Make sure you know the location of your main stopcock
- Check your home before going away – leaking taps and radiators can be a sign of potential problems
*Industry statistics provided by the ABI (Association of British Insurers) show that water damage claims (resulting from pipe damage) are increasing each year with £93M paid out in 2008. Figures for previous years are:
· 2007 - £80M
· 2006 - £46M
· 2005 - £35M
ENDS –
Notes to editors
- Congregational & General Insurance (C&GI) is one of the country’s most respected insurers of homes and churches with over £9 billion household assets and almost £5 billion church assets covered in the UK. More information is available at www.congregational.co.uk
- Based in Bradford, C&GI is wholly-owned by a charitable trust which to date has received over £6million for disbursement through grant application to churches and other worthy causes.
- In addition to issuing policies for over 6,000 places of worship of all denominations, the fastest growing area of its business today is the private homeowner. For more information visit www.shared-values.co.uk
For further information please contact Nick Wood or Katie Scoggins in theCongregational Press Office on 0113 243 1117.
Email nick@lucre.co.uk
