Problem with insurance assessors

Kashkai

I have a water leak under the floor in my hallway that I noticed when the laminate floor started to bubble and expand. I took the floor up and sure enough the concrete was wet. I let it dry out for a week and was left with a dark damp patch that I assumed was where the water was surfacing.

I rang three plumbers but they were all reluctant to start digging as they said the leak could be anywhere and not where it was coming to the surface. So I engaged this company who assess the damage, deal with the insurance company, fix the problem and reinstate the floor, touch up paint etc, all supposedly hassle free for me, or so I thought.

Their plumber missed three appointments, so I missed 3 days off work. When he eventually turned up (I was in work that day so the wife dealt with him), he didn't dig where I told him to over the phone but traced two other channels where there are pipes but he found no leak from these pipes. I told him again where I found the damp patch but he said there were no pipes there, despite there being two radiators on a direct line to the hotpress and where their pipes pass under this damp patch. He said he'd leave the other pipes exposed for a few days to see if anything showed up and that he'd return soon with some plywood to cover the channels he dug in the floor. That was two weeks ago and I'm still waiting on the plywood to cover the damgerous trenches he dug in the floor. In the meantime, I put down newspaper under some plastic sheeting and relaid the laminate floor again to see if the dampness returned. I took up the floor this morning and the newspaper was damp.

Now the problem is this company say there is no leak which is bs as I saw the wet floor myself. They want to finish the job and get paid by the insurance company despite the fact that they have not found or fixed the leak. If I let them fill in the floor, relay the laminate and the leak subsequently reappears, the insurance company won't pay out for a second repair I'm pretty sure.

Where do I go from here?

Sponge Bob

If it disappeared since you turned the heating off for the summer then you have no choice but to turn the heating on again and bring the leak back.

ttm

I know your're asking this in Consumer Issues, but isn't it more of a Plumbing/DIY issue? atm you're stuck with the practical problem of proving your point.

If the company are going to make good anyway why not ask them for a quote just to dig up where you think the problem is, if they'll give you one you should only paying for the extra bit of digging as they are making good anyway on the insurance.

I'd love to get all techie about how to find leaks in pipe but this is the Consumer Issues forum

Consumer wise you've employed experts all you can do is employ a second expert to say the first is wrong. Untill you have some form of proof or expert advice no one will take the slightest notice of you.

dudara

I think you'll get more tageted advice for this one in Plumbing & Heating

dudara

yoshytoshy

If you think the leak is on your heating system ,i.e on the line to the radiators.
Tie up the ballcock feeding the heating ,try and mark the line of water in the tank with tippex or something bright.

The water level should drop if theres a leak.