Q. A shower pan leak caused wood floor damage. Our insurance company says damage from a shower pan is not covered. That seems absurd to me. There is no way we could have known there was a leak until we saw the wood warping. Should our insurance claim be covered?
A. Your issue is a very common misunderstanding that occurs between the policyholder and the insurer in the loss adjusting field. Insurance companies in the U.S. typically do not pay for the cost of the failed item. However, they do cover the resulting damages as long as the cause of the loss is covered. In your case a worn out shower pan would be excluded as wear and tear, etc. That is not an insurable event. But, depending on your type of policy and its language, the resulting wood floor and other property damage would be covered. Of course, if you knew about the water damage and did nothing to prevent further damage, it’s likely the insurance carrier would not pay due to your failure to mitigate the damages.
We often get calls about water damage from broken pipes in concrete slabs or below tile floors etc. The same result applies. The insurance company will pay all costs to get to the broken pipe leak and the cost to replace and repair the torn out areas. But they will not pay for the actual cost of the pipe break repair which typically is minor. The cost to tear out and replace plus the cost to fix items damaged by water could potentially run in the tens of thousands of dollars. The cost to repair the item that broke or wore out is generally minimal.
If you have questions regarding any property insurance claim related issues please call 800.321.4488 or contact us to submit a question to one of our public adjuster or insurance claim experts.