Are blocked drains covered by house insurance?
One of the most common home improvement projects is the repair of plumbing fixtures. Indeed, it does not matter how well-maintained home is; it will still face problems with its plumbing systems.
Plumbing problems present themselves in different shapes and sizes. And when they do, you may never know which are covered by your house insurance and which ones are not. In this post, we shall look at plumbing repair projects that home insurance includes.
Burst Pipes
Most home insurance policies will cover burst pipes. Bursting of plumbing pipes is looked upon as more of an accidental happening than it is a careless mistake. Modern plumbing pipes are made of solid material. Plus, the pipes are ordinarily well-hidden within the structure of your house.
So, it is unlikely that the bursting of pipes results from acts of negligence on the part of the homeowner. However, most insurance policies will not cover pipes that burst out of corrosion or too old pipes. Therefore, always ensure older plumbing pipes are replaced before they broke and leave you with hefty replacement fees.
Pitch-fibre Pipes
In the 1950s and early 1960s, most plumbing pipes were manufactured with pitch fibres. With time, these pipes have since seen massive upgrading with more heavy-duty pipes. However, there are still homes with pipes made of pitch fibre. For such households, your home insurance may not cover such damages as they are considered obsolete and of more inferior quality.
As such, home insurance companies consider them more susceptible to breakages than modern clay pipes. Therefore, you may need to have pitch-fibre pipes replaced with the contemporary heavy-duty versions to enjoy any home insurance benefits.
Leaking Pipes
The most common causes of leaky pipes are old age. And fair enough, most pipes develop leaks as a result of wear and tear or corrosion.
As expected, these causes are classified under negligence'' as opposed to accidental, and as expected, leaking pipes are not covered by home insurance.
Therefore, it is imperative to have all your leaky pipes fixed during the routine checks and maintenance procedures.
Blocked Sewer Pipes
Sewer pipes get clogged in the same manner other plumbing pipes do. However, the difference is that a blocked sewer pipe is an emergency plumbing situation. If not addressed with the urgency, you could be dealing with a full-scale public health issue.
Perhaps it is due to this aspect of urgency that most home insurance companies cover blocked sewer pipes. However, remember that you will still need to prove that the blockage is accidental and not caused by negligence on your part.
The difference between the plumbing repairs covered by home insurance and those that are not come down to the cause. If the problem is the result of negligence; such as improper use of the system or inadequate maintenance, it will not be covered by insurance policies.
Do you require emergency help with blocked drains in Redcar, Darlington, Hartlepool or East Cleveland? Our drain unblocking services can quickly and effectively deal with your drainage problems.