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Sewage flooded house three times as a result of the negligence of water company contractors...
My house has been flooded by raw sewage 3 times in 8 days - my insurers are involved in making good the damage - but the 2 subsequent floods have been found to be caused by building debris blocking the street main sewer and backing up to and flooding my house. The rubble entered the main sewer from remedial sewer works 100 metres upstream from my home - do I have cause for legal redress as I contend the water company failed in a duty of care to maintain the sewers in a satisfactory manner and their supervisors / staff and contractors were negligent in allowing debris to foul the main sewer when connecting a branch to a new housing estate - our home is still undergoing drying out 1 month on - certificates of dryness cannot yet be issued therefore restorative work cannot begin - our holiday plans are in turmoil - our home has been cross contaminated with effluent residue - our drive + path is covered in toilet paper residue from the thousands of gallons of effluent which poured down the side of the house. We do not expect to be back to normal until well into the new year. The stress and upset from the whole family is proving to be unbearable.
From the circumstances you describe it is possible that the second and third flooding incidents are the fault of the contractors. However, you would have to apportion the damage of each incident. It is unlikely to be one third each.
We would guess that 90% of the damage was cause by the first incident with the second two simply prolonging the agony. If the fairly assessed proportion accounts for one damage over £5000 it would be worthwhile appointing a solicitor as above that level costs are recoverable.
That said if your insurers are willing to meet the claim in full it is really a matter for them to recover their costs.
Call our First Response team on 0800 037 1066 if you need additional assistance.
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