How can you tell if you need to replaster when affected by water?

[splishsplosh]

the houses on either side of us flooded due to burst water tanks, and some water has leaked through to ours, where we have freshly plastered walls - will it just dry out, or is there a chance it would have to be re plastered, and if so, how would we know?

Wait for it to dry out and see how smooth the plasterwork is. If it was broken by water coming through, then obviously it will need replastering. If the water sat there for some time trapped, then the plaster will be damaged and likely to fall off. But, if it ran off the walls quite fast then it will probably be stained and need a stain block applied before it is repainted.

Thanks. It hasn't been painted yet, so I'm glad hadn't got around to that yet.No idea if it was trapped for a while - it must have come through soon after it happened, it's come through in several places, and some bits have started to dry out.

I thought it might be covered by the other people's insurance but apparently not. Suppose my buildings insurance might cover?

I would be deeply about it not being covered by other people's insurance. I would ask for details of their policy. Letting water flood into someone else's property is pretty much the whole point of building insurance; I suspect that they may not have any.

If the plaster is smooth when it dries out or has only very slight bubbling that can be sanded down, you will be fine. If not, it will need replastering.

They have More Than insurance - the neighbour thought it would be covered, and I left my keys with him so he could show the claims assessor the damage when he came to see their house, but later he said they told him it wouldn't be covered.

Unfortunately our other neighbour doesn't have insurance

Dh is a property claims expert, and he says that it should be claimed off your insurance - if there is any claim against the other insurer, they will deal with it.

As for the plaster, he'd need to know the amount of water involved, and what the party wall is made of - it might be that the plaster will need to come off to allow that to dry otherwise you will have long term staining and damp coming through

Thanks. So how do i find that stuff out? If i contact my insuers would they send someone out to look, even though it's not a huge area affected? The only builders I know I wouldn't trust not to say of course it neds re-doing, so they get more work!
Our uninsured neighbour is slightly odd, turns out his house if just stacked full of rubbish, he's been living without heating, and even now is still staying there with no heating or electricity even though the place has been badly flooded. The damp coming in from his side isn't starting to dry out at all, whereas at least on the other side it's gradually drying.

Yes, they would almost certainly send a loss adjuster out - you may need dehumidifiers in if your uninsured neighbour isn't drying out