Septic tank insurance

At UKDP we get a number of calls from property owners asking for septic tank insurance. It’s understandable, really, because you have this great big expensive bit of kit under the ground at your property – and what happens when it goes wrong?

If you have a prang in your car, you have car insurance to cover it. If your (darling) 5 year old knocks your treasured new widescreen TV over, you have contents insurance to cover that too. So what about when you have septic tank problems?

The truth is, you are probably already covered. And if you’re not, we can help to make sure you are in future.

You see, there isn’t really a product on the market for insuring septic tanks. And no, it’s not because insurers don’t want to go poking around in such unpleasant matters. Most property owners are actually already covered under their existing buildings insurance policies, even though they may not realise it.

Most customers we deal with are often surprised that their existing buildings insurance gives them any cover for septic tank problems. But let’s be honest, unless you have a degree in understanding insurance policy gobbledegook, most people aren’t entirely sure what exactly it is that they ARE covered for.

So, grab your buildings insurance policy (a glass of wine might help too) and I’ll try to explain.

If your property’s drainage system (e.g. septic tank, soakaway, cesspit, sewage treatment plant) is damaged, most buildings insurance policies will cover the cost of a repair or replacement under a section of the policy called 'Accidental damage to underground services’. If it doesn’t specify that exactly, find the Accidental Damage section of the buildings policy (not to be confused with your contents policy which is purely for the stuff in your house) and read the details in your policy wording.

If it doesn’t specifically say 'Accidental damage to underground services’, but it also doesn’t state that things like drainage tanks and pipes are excluded, then you’re likely to be covered. It’s confusing, I know – some policies are worded in a way that is almost guaranteed to give you a headache.

You can also call your insurer and ask them to check. Although you should tread carefully. We have come across a small number of situations in which a customer has been told by an inexperienced call handler that they’re not covered when, in fact, they are.

Have a look through, and if it really doesn’t make sense then give us a call and we’ll try to help.

Any buildings insurance policy is there to cover you for damage to your property. It’s not there to cover you for things such as problems caused by a lack of maintenance or because your septic tank is so old it’s received its letter from the Queen.

Here are the ten most common septic tank problems. As a general guide, the first six are usually covered by buildings insurance policies.

1. Tree root damage
2. Ground movement
3. Vehicle damage
4. Collapsed baffle
5. Damage to dip pipes
6. Hydrostatic pressure
7. Age of the septic tank
8. Lack of maintenance
9. Incorrect installation or faulty workmanship
10. A change in ground conditions

As your septic tank is under the ground, often you can’t actually see what’s happened to it, let alone be able to explain exactly what has caused any damage that’s happened.

This is why it’s so important to work with a specialist claims management company if you have a damaged septic tank – often what’s caused the damage or what needs to be done to put it right can come down to some very technical debate (and yes, I do really mean arguments) with insurers.

Also, trust me when I say that you don’t want to be getting into discussions around 'solids', 'sludge' and 'crust' within a septic tank. Just leave that to us!

Now, I say that 'most' policies provide cover, because some insurers now sell policies in which you have to pay extra for 'accidental damage' cover. Or they will offer you a basic level of accidental damage, with an option to pay for 'additional' or 'extended' accidental damage cover.

Insurers we know of that currently offer those types of policies include Direct Line, Prudential, Churchill and AXA.

It’s sometimes sold as a premium type of cover, even though accidental damage was once a standard section of any buildings insurance policy. This means that if you choose not to take the extra cover, you won’t be covered if your septic tank becomes damaged. Of course, it’s entirely up to you, but sometimes the accidental damage cover only costs a few pounds extra a month – and it can save you thousands of pounds if anything goes wrong.

Don’t panic. With any luck, your septic tank will give you years of trouble free service yet, and you won’t need to worry. But it’s good to make sure that if any problems do pop up, you’ve got the right cover in place.

If you have a policy in place which doesn’t have accidental damage, you should be able to call your insurer to get that added on. If you have a policy which states that it excludes septic tanks, unless you’ve had any claims on that policy, you should be able to cancel that policy and find a new one that does. Be aware though, that changing policies will only help if your system is currently working as it should be - if you're already experiencing problems, any new insurer will rightly argue that the problems began before they started providing cover.

If you've noticed the problems as soon as you've moved in, ’m sorry to say that no, you’re probably not covered by your buildings insurance. Unless you had a thorough septic tank inspection or Home Buyer Survey carried out when you purchased the property, which confirmed that there were no issues with it.

The problem is, your insurer will only cover you for problems that have occurred (or are most likely to have occurred) while you have owned the property. If you notice a problem, say, within a month of moving in and a septic tank inspection confirms that there are tree roots growing through the tank, then your insurer isn’t going to accept responsibility for fixing it. Understandable, really. Which is why we often go on about how important pre-purchase drainage surveys are – please don’t buy a property without one! Give our team a call today if you're about to buy a property with a septic tank.

So, by way of summary, you are probably already covered for septic tank insurance without even realising it (you clever little thing, you).

Hopefully, you won’t have any problems that need a claim to be made, but if you do, you know where we are. The team at the UK Drainage Professionals are experts in resolving septic tank problems, and in managing septic tank insurance claims to get property owners back to where they need to be. In the meantime, make sure you are getting your tank emptied regularly as this is something insurers will want to check if a claim is made.