As summer heats up take steps against subsidence

As summer heats up and we’re hit with soaring temperaturs and less rain it’s important to take steps to reduce the risk of subsidence.

Subsidence is already a major issue for many homes.

The ABI (Association of British Insurers) has dealt with nearly 150,000 subsidence claims over the last 4 years alone.

We’ve had 2 wet summers and as we go into the Met Office predicted scorcher of a summer, the risk of subsidence increases.

70% of subsidence claims are in areas of shrinkable clay soil which is common across many parts of the UK and particularly across the South East of England.

Senior Structural Claims Manager for Halifax House Insurance, Neil Curling, comments ‘Signs that a property might be suffering from subsidence include cracks in walls, particularly if they start from corners of windows or doors which themselves may become difficult to open or close.’

Halifax home insurance suggest steps to take to check against and help avoid subsidence include

• When buying a house, check for historical activity such as mining – 15% of subsidence claims are due to previous mining activity
• Check the property drainage as subsidence can be caused by water leakage into the soil – 15% of subsidence claims arise from water washing away finer soil in the ground
• Ensure trees are not too close to the property. Tall trees too close can be an issue, particularly for homes built on a clay subsoil

Trees are such an issue for subsidence that the ABI has recommended planting distances for many species.

If you are concerned about subsidence the sooner you contact you home insurance provider the better so that appropriate action can be taken.

Halifax offers unlimited buildings cover. This means that homeowners will not be underinsured for the cost of any rebuilding work arising from subsidence issues.

It is vital to get home insurance that provides the right level of cover for your needs and that you are accurate with the information you provide at the time of taking out your insurance.

It might help to compare home insurance offered by different providers using a comparison website such as Confused.com, Gocompare.com or moneysupermarket.com for example.