INSURANCE Advice


DON’TlEAvE yoUR HOME WITHOUToNE


‘Fuse boxes’ for watermake sense …so why aren’t they in every block, asks AdAmsAiNt?


it is received wisdomthat the biggest cause of insuranceclaimsinblocksofflatsfollows escape of water. Thoseclaimscan quickly runontofive figures andmoreaswater seeps throughthe building anddamages oneflat after another. As aresult, insurancepremiums andexcessesget higher andhigher. The ultimate sanction forablock withmultiple claimsiswheninsurersrefusetocover escape of wateraltogether,making theflats impossible to mortgage. Yet,amazingly, we allseemtoaccept this as anecessary evil and only bother to take preventiveactionafter theinsurersstart demandingpremiums or applying excesses that are completely unacceptable to leaseholders.Sowhy is water damage so common?Myviewisthatblocks areeitherbadly built, badlymanaged or badly livedin.


IS yoUR bloCk bAdly bUIlt? Wefrequently hear stories of newblocks barely outofwarrantyexperiencingleakafter leak after burst!Thisbeing thecase,whyare protectivedevices notmandatory underthe Building Regulations? At themomentthe focusofthe regulationsisonenergyand water efficiency but the repair and replacement work that followsescapeofwater hasamassive carbon footprintthatquickly negatesany energy efficiencymeasures that areinplace. TheRegulations also demand that newor refurbishedbuildingsare designedtolimit waterconsumption to 125litresper person perday.Yet atap left running or pipe joint disconnected couldwasteamassive 125litres in under 10 minutes.


bAdmANAgEmENt In thesedaysofincreasinglyprofessional blockmanagement, there is no excuse for lettingplumbingfallintodisrepair.Iwould counsel anyleaseholdertocheck that their managing agents have aplanned inspection andmaintenanceregimeinplace forall plumbing in common areas.Managers ought to be fully aware ofwhere all the pipes and outletsare underLegionellapreventionrules anyway.


Flat Living Summer 2012


bAdly lIvEd-IN bloCkS Taps left running?Appliance hosesthat have notbeenchecked sincethe dishwasher or washingmachine was fitted? Flats sub- letand tenantsnot as diligentasanowner occupier mightbe? Remember,aleakthatgoes unnoticedfor half an hour is half atonne of water running through your flat. Theideathatyou,asaleaseholder, might


be liable foralarge insuranceexcessshould waterescapingfrom your flatcause damage should be incentiveenoughtoinvest in aflood preventiondevice–yet fewpeopledosountil theirinsurersinsistonitbecauseofapoor claims history.


givingtheconcept a voteof confidence


What is truly astonishing is that preventive


action in the form of automatic stopcocks to shut off thesupplybeforeextensive damage happenscan cost less than £200 aflat.That’s probably less than each leaseholderspendson window cleaning every year. There’splentyofchoiceonthe market,


so forany flatowner nottotakethisbasic precautionbeggars belief. Afterall,evenifyou arethe only flatowner in theblock to bother, at least you can be sure that your flat won’t land youwithamassive insuranceexcessbill. Of course,ifall theflatstodecidetoinstall an automaticstopcock,there is everylikelihood of asupplieroffering trade termsand big savings.


INSURERS votE foR bUIlt-


IN flood pREvENtIoN That innovative brokersare nowshowing the way ahead and offering incentives for leaseholders to invest in internal flood preventionhas to be agood sign. Insurers are nowgivingthe conceptavoteofconfidence


Insurers arenow


with someofferingreduced premiums and excesseswhere patented Floodcheckvalves areinstalled.Anautomated stopcock fitted to every house, flat or storey of an office building couldprevent untold expense, misery,waste anddisruption. These devices simply standsentineland turn off thewater supply if waterflowsfor too long (tap left running), tooquickly (burst pipe or disconnected appliancehose),not at all(building left unoccupied)orifthere is a risk of freeze/thawflooding. Remote controls andwet paddetectors areoffered withmost systemsonthe market. Holiday homesand letpropertywerethe first to benefit fromreducedpremiums andexcesses once Floodcheckvalveswereinstalled and nowspecialist blocks of flats insurers have also negotiated specialschemes thatmean bigsavings up front.Majordevelopersand facilitiesmanagers are also voting with theirchequebooks,withthe developers of theLondon Athlete’sVillage installing FloodcheckAutovalvesinover2800flatsin Stratford.●


Adamsaint ismanaging director of Floodcheck tel 0844 335 6668 email adam@floodcheck.co.uk


Thesedevices turn offthe supply if waterflows for too long


Floodcheckwas


establishedin1998and is runbyfather andson teamAdamandBill Saint. Thecompany continues to lobbyfor Buildingregulations that ensure that no newflatsare built


withoutthisbasic protection.


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