Do you notice traces of humidity in your ceiling and suspect water damage from your neighbor upstairs? Notify him immediately in order to carry out a water leak search and determine everyone’s responsibility. But who should pay the costs of this intervention? Is it home insurance, the tenant, or the owner of the home?
Water leak: how to react to this disaster?
Are you experiencing a water leak and don’t know what to do? First of all, you will need to notify your neighbor, the trustee, the owner of your home (if you are a tenant) or your insurance as quickly as possible.
Then, you will have to complete a “water damage” declaration and an amicable report. Gather all the documents in a file and send it to your insurer within five days of discovering the water leak.
For find water, start by looking at the taps and joints. In fact, these parts wear out over time and can leak water. If there is nothing, take a look at your toilet, boiler or water heater, these places are very prone to this type of problem. If you cannot find the source of the water flow, quickly request the intervention of a professional. leak search expert Paris.
Once the leak is detected, immediately turn off the general water supply to your home. If you suffer significant damage, also turn off the electricity to avoid electrocution. If your home is completely flooded, call the fire brigade to help you.
If your insurer offers you an expert visit, then prepare all the supporting documents for the repairs carried out for the leak and do not throw away any of your damaged property before their intervention at home! Try to take photos of the disaster. Indeed, insurance companies and experts need all supporting documents to estimate the damage and determine the amount of compensation as accurately as possible.
Also, don’t hesitate to take photos of your incident. Indeed, insurers and experts will need all possible elements to estimate the damage as accurately as possible.
Do not start refinishing your paint or carpets or drying your flooded surfaces. Wait for the expert’s visit or obtain prior approval from your insurer.
Who should be responsible for investigating the water leak?
As soon as you become aware of the incident, you must carry out a leak search to determine the causes. This intervention is essential to identify everyone’s responsibility for the water damage and to know whether it comes from common or private areas.
Water leak detection can be covered by the owner, the co-ownership, or the insurance, depending on the source of the loss. Consequently, two scenarios arise:
When the water leak from a pipe requires a search for a destructive leak, you, as a tenant, will have to contact the owner of your accommodation or the co-ownership in order to pay the costs of the plumber’s intervention.
When the disaster is in your private areas (for example, in your bathroom), it is up to you as a tenant to pay for the intervention of the leak detection expert and the unblocking costs WC Paris 18 In this case, check the clauses of your comprehensive home insurance contract to find out if your insurer can reimburse you and cover the search for a leak. If your contract indicates so, you may benefit from compensation. However, if this is not the case, check with your home insurance to find out the conditions for insuring your installations.
Finally, support for leak detection is not automatic and depends on the clauses of your contract. If the “water leak detection” guarantee is included, you will be reimbursed by your insurer. However, in certain cases you will not benefit from compensation, even if your contract contains this option. For example, if the water leak is due to a lack of maintenance, you do not have to do anything in such a situation.