Subsidence?

[quelque]

I just searched the archives and didn't see anything on this subject. I apologise in advance for the long message. I am in the process of getting quotes for insurance. We want to have subsidence covered under the policy, which I am beginning to find out is very difficult to get in France. So far I have only found a broker that uses Lloyds for cover.

My concern is that we did find a few ominous looking cracks in the walls of the property both inside and out. Prior to signing the compromis we desperately searched for a surveyor to no avail. We had a builder friend of the agent tell us it is not a problem. But, in the end we had a French Architect come out to inspect the property or at least we thought inspect. He walked around the property was there in total about 20 minutes, not even going in the loft space (did stand on chair and peered)nor really looking at the roof (did not bring ladder). He said it is nothing serious and suggested what to do to remedy. Worst possible scenario if movement continued use tie bars (spelling?) Based on this info we signed.

I won't go into it but what he ended up charging 700 euros is not what we were told up front. We asked him for a written report prior to payment of which he did provide in French with a statement saying that this was not an expertise report, we then asked him to change this wording of which he did to it is not an exhaustive report. We of course paid him and now are very worried that, 1- we may have a subsidence problem after all and 2- the insurance company will not accept this sort of report.

Before anyone says that I shouldn't complain about paying a fee for someones time etc.. We don't mind the fee or the time spent at the property to have an expert opinion to give us peace of mind was very important at that time. Our problem now is getting insured based on his report and simply trusting what he told us in the first place.

Has anyone else experienced a similar problem or have any advise? Any at all would be welcome.

[Hegs]

If there is any evidence of subsidence at the time of taking out the contact (i.e. the current cracks), I would really doubt that you would be able to claim for any subsequent damage. Insurance companies are notorious for getting out of these kinds of claims.

If it is an old house, then movement and cracks won't be uncommon, as you have said if it is ongoing then you can add ties (?tirons) to hold everything together. You can see these as big X, Y, and S-shaped iron things on the side of buildings, they look quite rustic really.

[Piprob]

In all probability you can relax.

As a very rough but useful guide, cracks are both more likely and more likely to be benign when for example -

The building:-
Is at least 80 years old
Has been re-occupied after a period left empty
Stands on rock
Stands on a hill-side or poorly draining soil
Has been altered significantly (eg roof replacement)
Was constructed originally using 'green' materials
Was constructed using 'naturel' materials
Is located in an earhquake zone (eg proximity of pyrenees)
Was built by experienced artisans before there were rules

And if it has stood for more than 80 years, it will probably out-last us all.

However, if none of these conditions are met then a fuller evaluation is necessary. There are some sound engineers posting on this site.

Rob

[Caterham7]

I have been dealing with subsidence claims in the UK for approx 15 yrs now,You are unlikely to get subsidence cover for subsidence if it already exists,or is ongoing.You are generally not covered for movement caused by 'building defects'either,shallow foundations can fall into this catagory.
See my reply to 'structural engineer wanted' currently on page2,for comments on causes of movement on clay.
If you can get some photo's and sketches of the construction/crack locations,depths of foundations etc I will be happy to give free advice,I will also be in the Dordogne to complete on my land purchase in July,and on hols in August so if appropriate I could carry out a survey if you require one.