Worried sick , re home insurance

Hi OP

Can I check I've got this clear

You had an issue with cracks on the porch with previous insurer
You called them and they came out to check
They said that it was an old issue and (presumably from before the policy was issued) and you couldn't claim
You now have an issue with a leak
The new insurers are saying they won't cover it because you never declared the previous issue

Are the two issues related in any way? I.e. a pipe may have cracked because something has shifted? Or to the best of your knowledge are the two issues unrelated (because one is in the porch and one is in the kitchen for example).

I think the key detail here is

1. what the person who visited for the first issue actually said. Did they say it was likely to be subsidence (just not covered because it happened a long time ago) or did they say it was just settlement cracks to the porch for example.

1. What information did you declare around questions about cracks and subsidence on the current policy (this should be on a statement of fact or similar document). If you have answered incorrectly (e.g. there is a question that says is there signs of cracking and you said no, but there actually is) then they may be entitled to cancel the policy but usually only if they can prove that this was deliberately answered incorrectly, or if they can prove that they wouldn't have insured you if you'd told them the full detail.

If they dont think you were deliberately tryinf to commit fraud and would have insured you, but they would have excluded subsidence or applied a bigger excess etc, then they can't cancel the policy or decline the leak claim because its not related to the cracking.

You need to read the part of your policy that references insurance act, material facts, and deliberate and innocent misrepresentation. And make sure they are following their own stance set out in their wordings. Then, if you have mis represented the facts (which will depend on the answer to 1 and 2 above) you will need to be honest and explain why it was innocent (eg you were advised it was normal settlement and historic so didn't realise it was a material fact)

@Upsidedownroundandround as this ie all quite new to you it's understandable that you've maybe expected too much from home insurance. It will only ever pay out for damage that isn't related to lack of maintenance or damage not caused by wear and tear. If HomeServe is additional cover for home emergencies, that will in most cases just provide a temporary fix but not the permanent repair. It's never worth claiming for small amounts as the premium will then shoot up next time.

So no I don't think you're stupid at all. I would never have even called them had I realised. I thought you just had to declare a 'claim' meaning you had received some payment from them for a successful claim.

I rang to check if it was worth claiming for a smashed iPad versus the cost of a replacement screen and it wasn't so I left it there. This was recorded on my file and potentially affected my premium.

We had this a few years ago

• take photos of the leak, showing in as much detail as possible both the leak and any surrounding damage it has done.
• get a plumber to repair the leak and take photographs of the repairs in stages. Pay the plumber and keep all the receipts.
• get a plasterer/painter to come and repair any damaged plaster work and paint, and take photographs of their work. Pay the person and keep the receipts.
• submit photos of all the damage and repairs to the insurance, along with the receipts and they should pay everything back to you minus the excess on the insurance premium.

If you turn the water off at the mains stop cock does the water stop dripping ?

how much water are we talking? A drip?

You are getting yourself worked up, it’s a stressful situation but it’s ok. Call homeserve again and tell them that the you have constant dripping through your ceiling and the last fix didn’t help. It’s already been several days and you can’t leave this until Monday. If they won’t come out you will have to borrow from a friend or use Christmas money to get an urgent plumber otherwise it will cost you more money the longer it is doing damage.

Re insurance I had similar where I asked a question and they started a claim. I had to go back to the previous insurer to ask them to close the claim and then all was fine. Is that what they’ve told you to do?

Firstly, it would never occur to me to contact the insurance for a leaking pipe. I would think this is part of property maintenance and up to you to deal with. However, I may be wrong, and if I am and it is a normal insurance thing to claim for then you are within your right to escalate it to their complaints team and explain exactly what you have explained here and they will give you a decision so you know where you stand. I was rejected a claim by my insurance earlier this year and went through the same process and it was granted immediately through the complaints department who apologised profusely and even gave me a hundred pounds in compensation for declining the claim initially.

On the insurance front, if you’ve got a letter from your previous insurer saying it’s not a claim, then you can share that with your new insurer and say you answered their questions in good faith.

I agree with this. Get Homserv back as they haven't done the job properly. Or they need to explain to you, clearly, why it's no longer their responsibility despite coming out previously.

But you do need a plumber asap before the whole ceiling collapses.

You should go back to HomeServe if they haven't completed the repair properly. If they can't repair it for some reason then they should advise who can. You are paying them an annual fee to deal with problems with pipes and plumbing.....

OP you cannot sit with a pipe dripping water into a bucket of water and wait for the insurance to fix and pay. You need an emergency plumber.

I presume you have turned off your mains water?

Boo for being so abrupt to someone who is clearly having a shit time, it’s unnecessary

Yeah this isn’t the sort of thing where you wait for your regular plumber to fit you in. You ring around every emergency plumber within 20 miles and ask the first one who answers. C’mon op if you’re old enough to own a house you’re capable of working out that you need to make the water stop coming out of the pipe asap! 🤦‍♀️

I've owned multiple homes and never claimed on home insurance for anything that small? Your first step should be to get a builder/plumber/whichever trade is suitable to have a look. You don't just call out your insurance for every slight issue. And you never wait for home insurance to fix an active leak!