An apartment block has had a partially collapsed roof for nearly nine months - and residents face a £300,000 bill to fix it after being told they're not insured.
Surveyor reports carried out in the months since the storm have revealed the roof was built with an ‘inherent defect’, which means leaseholders are unable to claim insurance and will have to pay for the repairs themselves. Quotes for the repairs are around £290,000. In an email to leaseholders Firstport said they had been ‘unable to access’ the roof for inspections - something they did not deny when the M.E.N contacted them for comment - but did not answer when asked when the last close-up inspection of the roof had taken place.
Firstport acknowledged that this was a ‘difficult time and situation’ for leaseholders, adding that the insurance claim was not rejected due to the damage inflicted by the storm, but because of a ‘a pre-existing inherent defect in the roof dating from the time of construction’. “It has affected every aspect of my life, including my personal relationships and mental health,” she said. “I have had to see the doctor frequently, I’ve had to take a serious amount of time off work which I have never done before.
Tenants and leaseholders at five properties told us there was water damage and alleged that this could have been avoided if Firstport had acted to repair the roof quicker. Firstport say that they are taking steps to install a waterproof polyethylene film solution to the roof, which should halt further water ingress . But Alex says he is ‘scared’ of the prospect of the permanent roof repairs continuing to be delayed.
Between the shoddy building industry and insurance industry which tries to get out of paying anything, leaseholders have zero protection and luhc let this go on. 10DowningStreet michaelgove
TowerHamletsJL ‘An inherent defect’ More vague nonsense coming out from managing agents, as if being vague is what LHs need when things go so bad. What’s the point of insurance?
Get the insurance company to do it up
Moral of the story always pay for insurance