Hi

About two weeks ago i found a crack in the plaster on my recently plastered bay window. We looked out side and it looks as if one side of the bay window has dropped, This has caused a gap in the brickwork.The stone cill had dropped and you can see daylight through the gap.

The Question.

Immediately outside on the pavement is a very large tree. On the tree is a notice that the tree is going to be removed as it is causing an obstruction on the public highway as the roots are really large and they have pushed the tarmac pavement up.

Should i contact the council are they liable for the damage to my property caused if proved by the tree. I have not contacted my insurance company yet.

Any advice would be welcomed.

Regards

yes, you should contact both immediately.

and do it in writing or email.

I would suggest that you get advice from an established (long running) local builder first about the damage and try to get the damaged fixed outside of Insurance. On most Insurances you have a excess of a minimum of £1000, so are only covered for subsidence repairs above this amount. Once you have a subsidence claim noted on Insurance, you may come to regret it. Increased Insurance costs, possible reduced value of your house, as buyers put off by the subsidence.

It might also be worth speaking to the council about the damage to your property. They might be willing to send one of their own surveyors out to look at the damage and to consider the tree issues.

I would do those two things (contact Builder and council) before you contact your Insurers. But don't leave it too late to contact your Insurers if you find that the cost of repair is such that you have to use Insurance and the council are unhelpful. Normally you have to report any claim issue within a set period of time. If you do have to claim on your Insurance, your Insurers may attempt a recovery from the council, if they have not maintained the tree. If you have legal cover, they could also help you try to recover your excess.

I would strongly suggest you ignore the above advice as you could find yourself in a worse situation.

What happens if you contact a builder and have minor repairs carried out only to find the movement returns in the future and then you find your insurers will not accept a claim? If you start dealing with a claim yourself be ware that this can cause problems later.

I would also not approach the council as there is every likelihood that it is their tree that is causing the problem. Your insurers will have much more expertise in dealing with issues such as recovering money from the owner of an offending tree. Your insurers may also have a view on whether the council should just remove the tree in one hit; remember that tree removal can lead to heave which can be very bit as destructive as subsidence. If you approach the council you may find them being helpful to the point they prejudice your position with your insurers!

If you suspect you have subsidence you should involve your insurers at an early stage. A number of insurers will appoint a specialist to look at the damage and provide advice. They will consider if the damage is actually subsidence and deal with issues such as a recovery of their outlay – if they are seeking to recover their outlay they will automatically seek to recover your excess.

The idea that you can deal with this yourself and thereby avoid advising your insurers and having subsequent problems is muddled headed advice. The presence of subsidence is a material fact which you would need to report to your insurers when your policy falls due for renewal whether or not you had carried out a minor repair yourself or in conjunction with the council.

You might then find that on declaring the incident your insurers refuse to continue cover and you would find they would be perfectly entitled to take this action. On the other had if you put a claim to your insurers you will find there is an agreement amongst insurers that they will continue to offer cover. Therefore by advising insurers your position would be more, not less secure.

No problems having different opinions. Mine is based on working in the industry for over 20 years and is based on experiences with these types of enquiries. Many people report having cracks in properties, but they often turn out not to be related to subsidence. Once the subsidence claim in on record, it is not removed. It is then showing on CUE, causing problems for the consumer.

It is therefore better for the Policyholder to make enquiries with a surveyor and/or suitably qualified builder, before speaking to the Insurers. It is also commonsense for the homeowner to speak to the council about this, being that they are planning to remove the tree. I think they need to know about the damage the homeowner thinks has been caused by the tree roots. I am not suggesting that they prejudice the position of Insurers, should they need to take action against the council.

Once the policyholder has obtained advice from a surveyor and/or builder and spoken to the council, they are in a much more informed position to speak to the Insurers.