DAMAGED ROOF CLADDING RESULTANT DAMAGES CLAIM

ASSESSMENT

Black Bird Construction was contacted by the client’s insurance company to assess and conduct repair work. An assessment took place at the client’s property in Blouberg, where various items were inspected and a quotation was then generated and accepted by the insurer and client. Below is a breakdown of what transpired during the claim and excerpts of the assessor’s findings have been included as a means to explain the various building work required to repair the damages. The scope of work has also been included along with photos of the damages before and after the repairs were completed. We hope you enjoy the post and if you would like to learn more about Black Bird Construction please feel free to contact us.

REPORT

Damage Report:

Assessment 1 – Leak detection

Our leak detection team was sent out to the affected property to conduct leak detection tests at the home and to determine what the issues are regarding the moisture related damages. The issues that were brought to our team’s attention were maintenance related issues that stem from a poorly sealed shower frame. The tenant believed that there was initially a leak stemming from a burst pipe but after various correlation tests were done, this was obviously not the case.

After carefully looking at the problematic area in the property, it was more than apparent that ‘the leak’ was due to the lack of proper maintenance and a poorly sealed shower frame and not a potential burst pipe. The water that is used, while the shower is on, seeps under the existing aluminium shower frame and bleeds onto the floor in the adjoining bedroom. This moisture has subsequently caused resulting damages to the common wall between the bedroom and en-suite bathroom, as well as some of the skirting boards connected to these walls. These damages have progressively gotten worse due to the amount of time these issues have been occurring. Our plumbing team’s report reads as follows:

Our technician attended to the above-mentioned property on the 27th of January in order to conduct a leak detection test. After extensive correlation tests were conducted, no audible leaks could be located on any of the water supply pipes at the time of testing. However, after further inspections we found the following:

The toilet in the family bathroom is overflowing.
The kitchen tap is loose and leaking.
The basin taps in the en-suite bathroom dismantled and turned off.
A noisy valve in roof.
Large gaps on the roof at the wooden slats.
The shower waterproofing is defective. – Gaps at step and the grout is porous. The client advised that water pools on the floor after the shower has been used. All defects were found to be maintenance related.

Assessment 2 – Resulting damages

During my assessment of the resulting damages, as well as the issue relating to the damaged roof cladding, I identified a number of issues at the property. It was pretty clear that the initial issues were maintenance related but the issues connected to the damaged roof cladding was certainly storm related. I say this simply because there is no other way to explain what had occurred. These panels making up the roof cladding had been snapped and completely damaged. Due to the panels being so badly damaged, rainwater has been able to enter the opening and cause resulting damages to the inside of the roof cavity.

A thorough breakdown of the required repairs to the resulting damages has been detailed below:

Resultant Damages:

Roof cladding:

As per the images below, featured in this report, the roof cladding has been severely damaged. It is very difficult to determine what caused the damages. The only probable cause is wind-based damages that caused the timber to break/snap.
The pieces of cladding will need to be replaced and painted thereafter. We’ve priced to repaint the full section to achieve a high-quality finish.

Ceilings:

Due to the roof being exposed to the elements, the ceilings in the affected area have been damaged.
A layer of mold has developed along the ceilings in a few areas. Besides this layer of mold, no major damages could be seen along the ceilings or the adjoining walls.
We will need to simply prep and repaint the ceilings from end to end. There will be no need to replace any of the boards.

Interior walls:

The damages stemming from the leaking aluminium shower door frame have affected the common walls, causing the paint work to saturate, bubble and blister.
We will need to sand and repaint this affected wall from end to end to ensure a quality finish.

A thorough breakdown of the required repairs needed to the ceilings has been provided in the below SOW.