Top Tips: 5 most common leaks in a property and what to do in an emergency? No.4 A Neighbour’s leaking property

Friday August 7th, 2020

What to do if the adjoining property to you, leaks into your home?

Most neighbouring leaks come from bathrooms, kitchens or sometimes boilers and pipes.

The moment you spot the leak:

• Report it the occupier of suspected property.
• What type of leak is it? If it is an intermittent leak, this may denote a faulty toilet or corroded seals or grout.
• If the leak is intermittent communication with the occupier of the suspected property is key.
• Try to locate where the neighbour’s bathroom, kitchen or even boiler is, in conjunction to the leak damage.
• Try to eliminate the source of the problem by going through the motions of turning appliances on and off, until you have a good idea what is causing the problem.
• This will mean your neighbour can avoid using the offending appliance until a fix can be sort.
• If not source is obvious and the leak is bad enough, then ask for the water to be shut off until a track and trace service is underway.
• Ask the occupier for their insurance details.
• Inform the block management company if you have one.
• While small leaks feel unimportant, it will create damage to the property, so speed is of the essence and the occupant of the suspected property may have no idea of the leak.
• If you can’t get hold of the occupant, leave a note through the door or tape a note to the door, without your phone number, to ask to get in touch. Taping a note to the door, will give you a good idea when they have seen the message. If left untouched, they could be on holiday or the property might be vacant.
• In which case, you have to take action through the block management company if you have one.
• You would be expected to submit evidence of any damage. Take pictures before you clean up the area.
• Put a container or bucket to collect any drips and contact the block management company to see if they can help speed things up, should the pace be slow in getting this resolved.
• If the leak is substantial and you aren’t getting any communication from the occupant and there is not block management company to lean on, contacting 999 may be the best and only option.

What to do if your property springs a leak and affects an adjoining property?

When a leak occurs, you should always try to find the root of the issue first and try to isolate the water for that area and call a contractor to repair the problem.

The moment you are aware of the leak:

• Try to establish the source of the leak.
• Isolate the water in that area.
• Make contact with the affected property if they haven’t made contact already.
• Again leave a note if you get no answer at first.
• Ask to see the affected property to gather evidence.
• Take photos of the affected areas and list the damage.
• Inform your insurance company.
• Inform the block management company if you have one.
• Get two to three quotes for any remedial works and submit these to the insurance company, together with the repair.
• Availability for the works is key and this will need to be co-ordinated with the neighbouring property.
• The most important aspect is the repair to stop further damage. Don’t wait for the insurers to come back to you, get this done as soon as possible.
• Note that there may be a drying out period before any works can be approached. Find out this timescale and inform your neighbour of the plan. Having a timescale and knowing what to expect is key to helping to take the stress out of a situation.

If you have a burst pipe you may need to call the fire-brigade as the water will need to be pumped out of the property.

Next week explain how corroded seals in bathrooms and kitchens can cause substantial damage and how to prevent it.

Chloe Vella