Subsidence and other types of ground movement

• Clay shrinkage

  Clay shrinkage happens when soil with a high clay content dries out. Clay is about 30% to 35% water. It can dry out because of nearby plants absorbing the water. This can happen during prolonged dry spells. Clay shrinkage is one of the most common causes of subsidence.  

• Trees

  Trees can sometimes cause subsidence because their roots absorb water from the ground. Your insurer might ask a tree surgeon to cut back the tree, install root barriers or cut the tree down. 

  Sometimes a case might involve a third party, like a neighbour. Your insurer can take legal action against them if they won’t allow their trees to be reduced or removed. But we’d expect the insurer to: 

  • speak to you about this first 
  • think about the impact this might have on your relationship with your neighbour 
  • pay for the legal action 

  If the insurer takes legal action, we’d expect you to co-operate.  

  Your insurer can’t force a neighbour to do anything about their trees without taking legal action. If the insurer doesn’t take legal action, we’d expect them to find another way to solve the problem and repair any damage. If you don’t let the insurer take legal action, we might not ask them to find another way to solve the problem.  

• Escape of water

  An escape of water is usually caused by burst or leaking pipes. A significant or long-term escape of water can wash away particles in the soil. This can cause subsidence because it reduces the volume of the soil. It could also soften the soil and reduce its ability to support the building. This can also cause subsidence.  

  Your policy might have an ‘escape of water peril clause’. This means your insurer will look at your claim under this clause at first, not under subsidence. Usually this has a lower excess. However, sometimes subsidence is excluded from escape of water claims. This means you might have to pay a higher excess if you claim.

• Erosion of soil under the building (a ‘solution feature’)

  When the soil under a building erodes, it can create an underground cavern. This is called a ‘sinkhole’ also known as ‘solution feature’. Eventually, this gives way and causes subsidence. It’s often caused by water and can occur in limestone or chalky soil. The first sign of a solution feature is usually a small hole appearing at surface level. 

• Collapse of underground mines

  If an underground mine collapses, it can cause subsidence. This includes disused mines. Sometimes in these cases, a third party might be responsible for the damage. However, the insurer should still deal with your claim. They might work with the third party to sort out the loss or damage. 

• Poor ground

  Every property will ‘settle’ after it is built. This happens because the weight of the building compacts the soil underneath the foundations. However, this can be made worse by poor ground, leading to subsidence. Poor ground might be a result of:  

  • inappropriate material used by the builders 
  • builders not compacting the ground material properly  
  • the way the ground is prepared before construction starts 

  Any of these can lead to subsidence. We often see cases where floor slabs have subsided because of problems with the fill underneath them. This fill is not considered to be part of the site. Because of this, most policies exclude subsidence of floor slabs if there’s no movement of the foundations as well.  

• Decomposing organic material (‘organic fill’)

  As organic fill in the soil decomposes it loses volume and resilience. This can cause subsidence.

   

What we look at

• If subsidence has damaged parts of your property other than your house

  Many policies don’t cover damage to other parts of your property unless your main residence is also affected. This includes things like:  

  • patios 
  • paths 
  • terraces 

  Policies differ in how they define the main residence. Some include outbuildings like sheds and garages, but some don’t. We often see complaints about this. However, as long as the policy is clear about what’s included we don’t see this as a problem. This means we don’t expect the insurer to tell you about this specifically. When we look at a complaint, we’ll check the policy documents to see exactly what’s covered.  

• If you changed your insurer and then claimed for subsidence

  We see cases where customers have changed their insurer, then claimed for subsidence. The new insurer says the subsidence happened before the new policy started. It says the subsidence should be covered by the previous insurer, but the previous insurer doesn’t agree. 

  The Association of British Insurers has a Domestic Subsidence Agreement. If your insurer has signed up to this, they have to handle your claim in a certain way. The rules are:  

  • if you claim eight weeks or fewer after the start of your current policy, the previous insurer deals with the claim 
  • if you claim one year or more from the start of your current policy, the current insurer deals with the claim 

  You might claim more than eight weeks after the start of your current policy, but less than a year after it started. If this happens, whichever insurer you first told about the claim has to deal with it. Both insurers will share the cost. It doesn’t matter whether the damage happened before your current policy started. 

  Your insurer might cancel your current policy if you knew about subsidence when you took it out but didn’t say anything.

• Problems that can be confused with ground movement

  Some problems with properties look like they are caused by ground movement. However, they are caused by other things.  

  Sulphate damage

  Sulphate damage is sometimes mistaken for heave. It’s caused by a chemical reaction between cement paste in a concrete floor slab and sulphates in the filling under the slab. The chemical reaction is usually triggered by water. Policies don’t usually cover sulphate damage unless it’s caused by an insured event - for example, a leak from a water tank. 

  Cracking

  All properties suffer from cracking, but if your home has cracks, it doesn’t automatically mean you have subsidence. Cracking can be caused by: 

  • settlement of the building - most buildings settle in the first few years after being built 
  • poor design, materials or workmanship 
  • failure of a lintel - the support for the brickwork above a window or door 
  • expansion and contraction caused by changes in temperature (‘thermal movement’) 

  Your policy might not cover these things.  

• If you have a complaint about a repair

  We’ll treat your complaint the same way as other disputes about claims under home insurance policies.  

  We expect repairs to be effective and lasting. This means they must: 

  • fully put right the damage 
  • last for an appropriate amount of time - for example, a rebuilt wall should last for decades, but basic decorations might only last for a few years 

  Sometimes the only way for a repair to be effective and lasting is to carry out work on damage that isn’t covered under the policy. In situations like this we expect the insurer to carry out this work even if it’s not written in the policy. 

  We’ll look at expert opinions about the repair and the actions your insurer has taken. We’ll sometimes ask for further independent advice.  

• If your insurer has stopped payments for a claim

  We see complaints where the insurer has agreed to a repair and stops payments once the maximum amount has been reached, even if the work isn’t finished. In most cases like this, the insurer has entered into a contract to repair. This is separate from the contract of insurance. In this situation we’re likely to tell the insurer to continue to pay for the repair, even if it’s more than the maximum amount in the policy. 

• If the value of your property has decreased

  Sometimes the cost of repairs is greater or almost greater than the amount a customer has insured their building for. 

  If your property is beyond economic repair, the insurer might offer you compensation instead. This represents the reduction in the property’s value. It’s worked out based on the value of the property before the damage, minus the value of the property after it the damage. Your insurer must calculate this using expert evidence - for example, from surveyors or estate agents. 

  Sometimes customers complain that a property’s value has decreased even after it has been repaired and the movement has been stopped. They ask the insurer for extra compensation. In cases like this we’d normally say that if the property has been stabilised and repaired, there shouldn’t be a reduction in value and compensation isn’t needed.