Cleaning & Building Maintenance
That sinking feeling Following the second wettest winter on record, the threat of subsidence is
on the increase and a dry summer could prove disastrous. The weather has frequently changed its mind in the last few months. We’ve seen regular flood warnings, snow bringing traffic to a standstill in a matter of minutes and rare but welcome mild spells. Spring clearly can’t come soon enough and many of us will already be tentatively dreaming of spending time enjoying the British weather once the clocks go forward. However, as we look towards the warmer months, and hopefully a bit of sunshine, the effects of a winter of rain and snow may still be felt. A dry summer in 2013 would cost UK homeowners over £291million in damages due to shrink/swell subsidence following record rainfall in 2012, according to Searchflow, the property search provider. The risk for FMs is equally high.
looking forward to spending time in the garden but no so much for underprepared FMs. According to the British Geological Society, the preceding two years of rainfall have a strong influence on ground saturation in any given year. Clay soils swell when saturated but when dryer weather causes evaporation, these soils can shrink, crack and cause subsidence in properties.
2012 was the second wettest year on record[i], with total rainfall for the year 15% higher than the annual average[ii]. If 2013 turns out to be a very dry year, there is a risk that subsidence cases could surge. Long range forecasters are already predicting a dry, hot July and August[iii]. Good news for those
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In the 10 years to 2011, there were two periods of particularly high rainfall which were followed by very dry years. In 2002, 14% more rain fell than in a normal year. This wet period was followed by a very dry year — in 2003, rainfall was down 20% from the average. Rainfall during 2008 and 2009 was 15% and 8% above average. This long, extended period of high rainfall was followed immediately by a dry 2010, when yearly rainfall was down 16% on the annual average. In the dry years that followed these wet periods, subsidence claims rose by nearly a third (31%)[iv] on average.
Since 2001, subsidence has cost [i] Met Office
[ii] Comparison with the average annual rainfall between 1981 and 2000 (Met Office Statistics)
[iii]
http://www.ukweatherforecast.co.uk/summer- 2013-forecast/
[iv] Subsidence Claim figures from the Association of British Insurers [v] Figures from Property Assure
[vi] 2001 to 2011 subsidence claims figures (after repudiation) from the Association of British Insurers [vii] Figure estimated by Cunningham Lindsey
[viii] Based on the average increase in subsidence cases seen in 2003 and 2010
UK homeowners £3billion in repairs[v]. With over 220,000 cases of subsidence over this period[vi], the average cost per case is just over £13,600. In 2012, there were an estimated 16,500 cases of subsidence[vii]. If the UK were to experience a particularly dry 2013, similar to 2003 and 2010, the number of cases could rise to 21,365 this year[viii] at a cost of £291million to UK homeowners.
www.searchflow.co.uk
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