Leakage in the toilet is no small matter: all you need to know about fixing it
LIFESTYLE2020-09-03
5 Mins Read
Leakage in the toilet isn’t just a headache to your own family, it can also affect your next-door neighbours, or those on the floors down below. It can ruin personal relationships, or even lead to liabilities, so the problem must be dealt with sooner rather than later. In fact, the problem can come in many shapes and forms, with varying degrees of severity. Here is what you need to know:
1. Floor
This usually happens when the waterproof works haven’t been done properly to the floor when you move into or renovate the house. Bath or shower water will then seep through the floor, and wet the ceiling of the flat below.
Solution: It usually takes a big renovation of the bathroom, which involves rebuilding the whole bathroom floors, not just refurbishing the waterproof layers of the bathtub area.
2. Pipes
Leakage can happen due to cracks in old pipes, as well as accidental breakage during construction works. You can usually tell where the cracks are by the time leakage occurs. If it happens in your toilet when someone is showing in the flat above, then most probably the cracks are on your outlet pipes. If not, then the problem likely lies with your inlet pipes.
Solution: Get professional help to check the precise location of leakage and get those parts of the pipes changed.
3. Toilet seat
Decay in the inlet valve of the toilet seat can cause leakage at the back of the seat.
Solution: Try getting a spanner to tighten the valve. If it doesn’t work, try turning off the valve and the water supply. Then turn it back on, and put several layers of Teflon tapes on the joints. If the leakage continues, you might need to seek professional help to get the valve changed.
Home Insurance covers part of the expense
Water problems are the be-all and end-all of your household worries. A small leak requires a change of pipes, but a big one can cost you a big renovation. Leakage can even ruin your floors and cabinets, which is why dealing with water-related problems can cost you an arm and a leg. A home insurance can cover part of that.
So how does it offer protection? Firstly, it covers leakage-induced damages to your furniture, fixtures and fittings, electrical appliances and other personal valuables. If the leakage floods your house and makes it temporarily uninhabitable, some home insurance products give allowances for temporary accommodation on the basis of the number of affected days.
In the event that your independent contractor negligently breaks your pipes during renovation works, and causes seepage into other flats, or even puts the elevator in the building out of service, you may be liable to a large payout to other occupants and landlords of the building. Under these circumstances, you may file a claim to your insurer if the terms contain “Independent contractor’s liability under third party liability”.
Under what circumstances will your claims be rejected?
“Floods” has long been a popular claim item under home insurance. But pay attention to some situations where the insurance company will not compensate your loss:
1. Illegal structures
If there are illegal structures in your apartment, then that part will not be insured. Say for example, you have removed the main walls to make for a larger bathroom, then it will not be covered if a typhoon comes along and water leakage occurs, because the problem could have been caused by illegal alteration of the structure.
2. Non-accidental leakage
Common wisdom has it that burst water pipes must be caused by accidents. But if the burst pipes have long been buried underground and there is no damage on the ground, then that would mean no external force has resulted in the pipe breakage and therefore accidents can be ruled out as a cause. In that case, the cost of fixing the pipes will not get covered.
That said, even though the renovation cost in this scenario is usually not covered by home insurance, but if the burst pipes lead to an influx of water into the living room, destroying the wooden floors or electrical devices, then those parts can be part of the claim if they have been replaced before during renovation.
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