Home to be empty for weeks/ months- turn water off?

[TheGander]

My brother was admitted to hospital in September and is now in a rehabilitation unit. His house is empty. Should I turn the water off at the stopcock, he may not come out before spring 2023? Thanks for any advice. His house is not in the same town as me but I’ll be going over there next month.

Someone will need to contact his house insurance to say the house will be long term entry.
I'm not sure about water, would think yes turn it off, but I'd also be worried about damp over winter.
is there a neighbour who could keep a general eye?

You'll need empty house building insurance, which often asks that the house is heated to a minimum temp too.

@TheGander if your DB owns his home please make sure he has an email as a contact address on the register. www.gov.uk/government/publications/updating-registered-owners-contact-address

It’s easy to do and can stop anyone trying to defraud your DB.

As pp have said you need to think about insurance.

WRT water, you need to think about keeping the heating on during the winter. It may be better to keep the water and heating on a low heat rather than turning them both off.

some heatings have a frost setting so that the heat turns on in extreme cold as this can help prevent burst pipes and damp - my parents have done this in the past when they’ve been abroad for a few weeks over winter

Heating on twice a day with thermostat at low temperature to prevent freezing. It is a good idea to turn the water off as friends of mine went away for a fortnight and found the place flooded and that was in the summer

I'd turn the water off and run the taps to empty them, but leave the heating on at a low level to protect against damp. My boiler is a closed system, so I can do this, other types might be different.

It depends on the insurance - some will want you to drain the central heating system (if there is one). Regular inspections may also be required

We left the water on in my mums empty house while we were getting it ready to rent out. On the day the property company were coming to take photos for their adverts, we discovered water pouring down the stairs and through the landing ceiling! It turned out that someone, decorator possibly, had turned the immersion heater on and the cut off switch failed so the build up of steam pressure caused an explosion, blowing off the lid and damaging the mains water pipe!

Luckily we had informed the insurance company that the house was empty so they picked up the £21,000 bill for replacing floor boards, carpets, replastering in several rooms and a complete redecoration!

So my advice is turn the water off!

You can have the system drain so that you can't get burst pipes after you turn the water off, although personally, I'd leave the heating in anti frost mode and turn the water off.

Hello, thanks for all the answers. The situation is complicated because 1) he was sectioned and is now in a mental health rehab unit 2)the house is very neglected, has not been insured for years- it’s something that’s been at the back of my mind for years but I’ve mentally swept it under the carpet. Everything to do with my brother takes 5x as long as it should. I have to get him onside eg for insurance because he has capacity, but he’s disorganised, pleads tiredness and then does nothing, etc etc.
Regarding his heating, it’s an old warm air system, there is no timer in it but it could run at a low background level- I’ve been worried about his bills but maybe that should be done. The home is also hoarded, but that’s another story.
There is an insurance broker in his town whom my dad used when the home was his ( brother inherited it) maybe I should give them a ring.
I think I will turn the water off when I’m there next.

@Ilovetocrochet that must have been super stressful, glad you had insurance!

You probably won't get cover under the usual house insurance providers - most only offer 30 days unoccupied. We found a couple that would do 60 days but after that needed to take out specialist insurance.

Speak to his home insurers to check t&c’s of his policy. I hope your DB is better soon.

Thanks @Roselilly36 but his house hasn’t been insured for years. It’s something I need to look into.

Don't forget about legionaires disease when he comes back!

Thanks angel that’s a good point!

If he’s claiming benefits you might need to let them know due to how long he will be away

Definitely turn the water off. A woman near me went on holiday, her dh died whilst abroad. It took forever for an autopsy & to repatriate the body. Meanwhile back at home a water leak poured from the first floor through to the ground for 6 weeks. The house was wrecked and insurance wouldn't cough up. She was forced to sell the house 😥

The DWP has been onto him
already!
Gosh that’s a horror story Jippers, poor woman.

So stressful! Delayed us getting tenants in by eight months so losing £8000 in rent!

Aargh. I’m learning, properties are an endless list of jobs and hazards.

If it was insured there would be a stipulation that the heating is running at x degrees (varies depending on the insurer) 24/7 or water turned off and system drained between 1st Oct & 31st Mar. Empty property insurance is expensive.

You may be able to takeout insurance for him without needing any action from him.

When I insured my mums house while it was empty, the insurance company, Liverpool Victoria, did not stipulate a minimum temperature or for the water to be switched off. I was supposed to visit the house every week to check on things but during Covid this requirement was not enforced.

Had there been any conditions, they would have asked lots of questions when I phoned them about a major water leak which had brought down ceilings! With an hour of me contacting them, they had appointed a claims adjuster to visit the next day, all I had to do was get a plumber to find out the cause of the leak and prevent it from reoccurring. At no point was there any doubt that they would pay the full cost of repairs, less the excess of course.

I had paid £64 more to insure the house while empty, which I thought was very reasonable.

So I guess it’s a case of phoning around the get the best deal.

@Ilovetocrochet i've had 4 different policies on empty properties and they have always had stipulation on heating or water off & system drained. Insurance companies often rely on customer's reading all the T's & C's rather than point things out. I've had standard policies which have been fine to cover up to 30 or 60 days unoccupied but won't cover longer. Another which charged 175% of policy for unoccupied. It is definitely a case of shopping around but you definitely have to check and double check you know what you are buying - unfortunately insurance is often not suitable for specific circumstances and customers only find out when they try to claim that they don't meet the conditions and the policy should never have been sold in the first place.