Dealing with a leak

Buildings Insurance is about making good the damage suffered. It is not an opportunity to refurbish your apartment at a cost to the buildings insurance and it is not intended to provide betterment and make things better than they were previously.

For peace of mind, please consider ‘Contents Insurance’ and if you have carried out extensive, high specification alterations/improvements to your apartment, ‘Tenants Improvement Insurance’ should be taken out.

In the event of a leak, in the first instance the source of the leak must be identified and if necessary the water supply to the source of the flat or area isolated to prevent further damage.

Leaks internal to your flat 

If the leak is internal to your flat only then please notify the Building Manager in case the leak has affected flats below and in the vicinity. You, as the apartment owner, are responsible for repairs to leaks emanating from your own flat. You may also be responsible for repairs to damages to any flat affected by your leak.

Once your leak has been repaired please send the Building Manager proof of repair in the form of a plumbers report or a copy of their invoice.

Leaks from the roof or a communal area

If you have suffered a leak from the roof or a communal area then in the first instance the source of the leak must be identified so that the water can be isolated or a temporary repair carried out to prevent any further ingress.

The Building Manager will attend your flat to assess the damages, ascertain the location and to take photographs of the damaged areas. Please fill out the leak report form and return to the Building Manager.

If the damages are extensive then the BMML Board will be notified and if necessary a surveyor appointed to assess.

The Building Manager will then arrange for a contractor to attend to carry out any necessary repairs. A two week drying out period is then allowed to check that there are no further leaks.

The owner is to provide two quotes from reputable contractors with cover for £1 million in public liability insurance. All applicable insurers to be placed on notice.

If costs fall below policy excess, Building Manager to authorise repair works to proceed, in agreement with Board.

For costs exceeding policy excess, insurance claim to pursued.

Leaks from another flat

For flat to flat leaks the owner of the flat responsible for the leak must locate and repair the leak as soon as possible. The water supply to the flat is to be isolated until such repairs are carried out.

Once your leak has been repaired please send the Building Manager proof of repair in the form of a plumbers report or a copy of their invoice.

The Building Manager will assist in notifying the leaking apartment that there is a leak and to carry out the necessary repairs.

For damages caused by your leak into another flat you are responsible for the repairs in the affected flat. Insurance claims will only be considered on the buildings policy if the cost of the repairs are considerably above the insurance excess amount. Any claims will be subject to deductions of the policy excess.

The flat owner that has suffered the leak must allow at least two weeks drying off period after the leak has been repaired.

The Building Manager will attend your flat to assess the damages, ascertain the location and to take photographs of the damaged areas. Please fill out the leak report form and return to the Building Manager.

If the damages are extensive then the BMML Board will be notified and if necessary a surveyor appointed to assess.

The owner of the flat that has suffered the leak is to provide two quotes from reputable contractors with cover for £1 million in public liability insurance. All applicable insurers to be placed on notice (if applicable).

GUIDE TO AVOIDING WATER LEAKS

HERE ARE SOME POSITIVE THINGS YOU CAN DO TO PREVENT WATER LEAKS

Bathrooms/toilets:

• Check the condition of all your seals. These are the white flexible beads that run around your bath and shower, allowing water to run from your tiles and back into the bath/shower. If the mastic seal is damaged, split, loose or curling away from the wall or bath, water can freely run down the back of your bath or shower, and eventually make its way through the ceiling and into the property below, often through a light fitting.
• Check the grout in a bathroom (between the tiles) especially around wet areas. Gaps in grout can allow water in behind tiles, causing damp patches, risk of water leaking into the property below and other rooms, and tiles coming loose.
•  Toilets also need to be checked. If you hear any irregular sounds, such as the flush cycle taking longer than it normally does, or humming sounds, it’s a good idea to have it checked over, and is often remedied by adjusting the valve or the replacing the inlet valve washer. If you are aware of water constantly running into a toilet pan this indicates a potential ball valve problem that needs attention – do not ignore this, it could overflow. You may inadvertently be causing damage to the exterior of the building if your toilet is making a constant running sound. This will mean the external overflow is allowing water to escape onto walkways below and in icy conditions you could be causing a hazard. It will also mean staining to walls, encourage vegetative growth, damage mortars, and lead to possible ingress elsewhere
• Check taps for drips (often repaired by replacing a washer) and humming or vibration sounds when using the taps.
• Ensure that if you have a service duct or main stack within your property, it is accessible. The duct can provide access to valves, mains services & rodding eyes. If you are thinking about refurbishing your flat, your designer or contractor should give careful consideration to installing an adequate number of isolation valves and service access hatches. Without access hatches it makes locating the cause of a leak much more difficult and can result in destruction to tiles or marble.

Kitchens:

• Check your seals at the back of your kitchen worktop and around your sink. Spills need containing and gaps can often cause water to penetrate down the back or into your units.
• Check your plumbing. Nine times out of ten under the sink is where everything comes together – your water outlets for your dishwasher and washing machine, your isolation valves, and the waste from your sink etc.
  Make sure that nothing is leaking, and the outlet connections from your washing machine/dishwasher are secured and in place; frequent vibrations can cause these to become lose. Also check your plughole is not leaking.
• If you have a washing machine carry out frequent checks on the hose as this is a major cause of leaks.
• Check taps for drips (often repaired by replacing a washer) and humming or vibration sounds when using the taps. Descale tap heads – scale can be a cause of water hammer.
• If you have a service duct within your kitchen please ensure that this is fully accessible in the event of an emergency.

Radiators:

• Check your radiators, valves and exposed pipe work for leaks and any signs of corrosion and rust. Do you have bespoke radiator covers? These can conceal a leaking radiator so please inspect regularly. It is also important that you carry out regular checking/monitoring of all radiators/pipe-work within your flat where visible and leaking radiators must be fixed. The damage to flooring, carpets and floorboards could be a lot more serious and expensive than you might think.

STOPCOCKS AND DEVICES TO REDUCE WATER DAMAGE

Do you have an internal stopcock in your flat and if so, do you know where the stopcock is located? Can you easily turn it or is it rusted? Being able to turn off the water supply easily if water is leaking could save you thousands of pounds of damage and insurance premiums. If you do not have an internal stopcock, it is recommended you have one installed.

An annual test of the stopcock is a good exercise.

It is good preventative maintenance to spray WD40 or similar around the stopcock. And make sure your family members also know the location of the stopcock.

There are devices on the market that can be installed by leaseholders to reduce the likelihood of prolonged water damage. One device is a switch, similar to an electric socket switch, which will turn off the water supply at the stopcock.

THINGS YOU CAN DO TO HELP SHOULD A WATER LEAK OCCUR

Make sure we have up-to-date contact details for you or your letting agent or tenant in case no one is at home. This way it is easy for you to be contacted should you have a leak which is resulting in damage to a neighbouring property and will help to minimise that damage. If you are going away or the flat is unoccupied, please consider leaving a key with a neighbour or Security and inform us accordingly. A delay to entry can cause unnecessary damage.

LESSEES CONTENTS AND CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGE TO THEM

The insurances taken out by a landlord does not include insuring leaseholders’ or tenants’ household contents and personal effects.

It is strongly recommended leaseholders obtain contents cover to include third party liability. For example, if a water leak from one leaseholder’s flat causes damage to the contents of your flat, the initial claim will be made against your contents Insurance Policy. It may seem unreasonable but the leaseholder who is not at fault in any way will have to claim on his/her contents insurance policy, it is then up to the Insurance companies involved to agree liability.

If you have also carried out extensive, high specification alterations to your apartment, we strongly recommend you consider additional ‘Tenants Improvements’ insurance.

Information as at August 2022