Leaking central heating boiler? Discover your rights!

Questioner

There is a leak in the central heating system. At some point the boiler needs to be topped up at least twice a day or the system will stop working. The leak appears to be under the floor in the pipe network. There is no visible water damage to the house. That is why the insurer refuses to pay out. Can a non-functioning central heating boiler due to leakage be considered damage to the home?

Lawyer

I assume that the policy conditions - and they say a lot about the coverage - exclude solving the problem (including identifying the cause) from the coverage for damage that has occurred. This provides many tools to reject costs related to non-performance. (Material (consequential) damage to the building (which does not appear to be present – ​​where does the leaking water go??) is usually covered.

Lawyer

Dear questioner, it concerns consequential damage due to a (hidden) defect in the house. If it is a rental house, I would recover the damage from the landlord, who in turn would contact his insurer. If it is your house and you have just bought it, you can hold the seller liable for non-performance/non-conformity. If the house has been yours for a long time, the policy conditions are decisive; check them to see if consequential damage due to leakage is covered.

Lawyer

Of course the leakage is a cause of damage. The key question is who is responsible for the boiler (and therefore the leakage). You must limit your damage as much as possible according to the law and then the unavoidable damage can be recovered from: seller/landlord/the installer. You have not described the relationships, which is why I remain so general in this.