house subsidence

[bry]

Originally Posted by geoffdown

yes got Halifax which covers it but don't want to get tarnished with subsidane if it turn out to be not if that makes sense

It does make sense.Because if you sell in the future,it will be recorded.

[rustic]

Originally Posted by geoffdown

in a photo out side u wont c it that well as its only about 2mm in side in acttic is bout 1mm and runs from chimmey down following the motar line in some places and might be through a concret block no trees in a 5-6m and that's a small plum tree bout 6-8 foot high, but 10 y ago if not more there was laylandi trees bout 1.5m away from corner of house they were bout 12ft high and when cut down trunks were round 8-10 inches a crack appered then but has not got any worse that was 10yrs ago but crack in acttic has appeard in last 1.5yrs

How is the house constructed, ie cavity wall, inside breeze block, solid brick etc etc. How old is the house approx?
Are any neighbours houses affected?

On our previous house, there were cracks in the mortar on the outside between the lower and upper windows, but both windows were virtually floor to ceiling, typical 1970' house. When we sold the house these were not even mentioned in the survey. You often see poorly pointed brickwork on houses that clearly follow a crack, so should we be concerned about these?

I wonder how many cracks are already established in most modern houses, which have plaster board blobbed onto the wall. It's just you can't see them.

You have heard the term papering over the cracks, I wonder how many houses are sold with new wall paper.
Is the crack visible from the outside? If not, you could wait a while, but if you think that the chimney breast is at risk, then maybe some good pointing will help.

In screwfix they sell crack reinforcement kits, which comprise stainless steel pins and special adhesive which should strengthen the crack.

I am not a builder, but my thoughts are if you register a subsidence issue, you might see your premiums go up, and maybe the insurance company may later on, refuse to insure you. I don't know how house insurance works, but they are there to make a profit, by paying out as little as possible.

Personally, and this is only my non qualified opinion, I would pay privately for a structural engineer, maybe a few hundred, but this will either resolve your worries, or start the ball rolling for a full insurance claim with professional evidence.

Getting a builder to bodge or hide the job could affect a later claim, I don't know, it could be seen as preventative maintenance...

I know you are getting mixed replies and conflicting solutions, but the Insurance game is just that... a game, with winners and loosers, and we all know who the loosers are.

Some more food for thought there.


Rustic

[briggie]

when I tried to claim for a leaking roof due to loose slates / coping stones , they refused saying it was lack of maintenance ......just a warning ... they will try to wriggle out of it ..... even send a assessor ... in my case he didn't even go on the roof , he just stood at the roadside and used a camera with a zoom .