Trace and access when your insurer needs the leak found

Which part of an escape of water claim is trace and access?

The trace and access part of an escape of water claim covers finding where the escaping water comes from and, where the policy includes it, the work to reach it, and MoneySuperMarket says an insurer pays only for costs tied directly to finding the leak.

Admiral uses escape of water for water leaking from the mains supply, and applies it to water escaping from a fixed water tank, a domestic appliance, a water pipe or a fixed central heating system, and notes that it does not protect against every kind of water damage.

Trace and access is the part that finds the source. Admiral describes it as a common part of home insurance, especially buildings insurance, paying for the search for a hidden leak's source, including taking out and refitting parts of the building to reach it and restoring the home afterwards.

Read your own policy before relying on it. Admiral says policy limits and exclusions always apply, and its own trace and access cover sits only on buildings or combined home insurance, never on a contents-only policy.

What will an insurer not pay for under trace and access?

Under trace and access, an insurer will not pay to mend the leaking pipe itself, because the cover pays to find the leak, and insurers commonly exclude damage that built up gradually, from damp, mould or failed sealant, and leaks caused by wear and tear, in Ageas's and Aviva's guidance.

• The repair of the leak: Admiral says the cover does not include fixing the source, such as tanks or pipes, or the cost of the damage the leak caused.
• Gradual damage: damp, mould or failed sealant that built up over time is a common exclusion.
• Wear and tear: a leak from a pipe worn out over time is commonly excluded, and Admiral's cover for underground pipes leaves out pipes someone else looks after, such as the local water authority.

One ombudsman decision shows how this plays out, as an example and never as a rule. In DRN-5382026 the policy's trace and access cover did not pay for mending the leaking pipe, and the insurer applied its wear and tear exclusion after the report blamed a plastic pipe connection that had deteriorated with time. The cause a report gives can decide a claim, so it is worth knowing what your policy excludes before the search starts.

What should you agree with your insurer before the leak is traced?

You should agree with your insurer, before the leak is traced, whether it will send its own specialist or let you arrange one, whether you pay the bill first and claim it back, and what evidence it wants, because Ageas, for one, requires its agreement before any work begins.

1. Who traces the leak? Admiral's usual approach is for you to bring in a professional, while other insurers may send out their own trace and access specialist.
2. Who pays first? Admiral says you may at times pay the bill first and claim it back, keeping every invoice and report.
3. What evidence does the insurer want? Ask before work starts, and keep photographs of the leak and the damage from the beginning.

Ask your insurer before plaster or paving is broken. Ageas says it weighs whether tracing the leak is the most practical, cost-effective way forward, and it will not repay work done for a claim it later declines after investigating further.

Stopping water that is still escaping cannot wait. Admiral's steps, to follow only where it is safe, include closing the stopcock on the main supply and switching the power off, keeping away from electrical appliances; where reaching the mains switch would mean standing in water, Admiral's advice is to get an electrician.

What do insurers look for in a leak investigation report?

Insurers look for the leak's position, the access work that reaching it involves, photographs and, where it is known, the cause, because their exclusions turn on the cause.

Keep the broken parts too. Keoghs advises that failed parts and pipework are kept until the insurer says they may be thrown away, and that someone photographs or films the escape as it happens.

None of the insurer pages read for this page says a report must name the methods used. In decision DRN-4125471, though, the ombudsman sided with a homeowner whose video of the leaking shower supply pipe it found more persuasive than the insurer's specialist's tests, which shows how much clear evidence of the leak itself can weigh.

How does water company help fit with an insurance claim for a supply pipe leak?

Water company help sits beside an insurance claim rather than replacing it: Wessex Water tells owners to contact their insurer right away about a supply pipe leak, Thames Water says to check buildings insurance first and offers its free repair only where the leak is not covered, and South West Water's and Bristol Water's free half hour of leak detection comes before any repair.

Thames Water puts it plainly: the first thing to do with any leak at home is check your home building insurance policy. Thames Water's free repair applies where a supply pipe leak is not covered by home emergency cover or insurance and you cannot pay a professional privately.

The water companies' leak allowance windows run alongside a claim. An allowance on a metered bill depends on repairing the leak within each company's window, from 21 days with Bristol Water to 30 days with South West Water, so agree the next step with your insurer quickly.

Who owns which length of buried pipe, and each company's help, are set out under underground water leak detection.

Which hidden leaks can an insurance claim pay to trace?

Hidden leaks on the water pipes inside a home, on its central heating and on its buried supply pipe can all be traced under a claim, where the policy's trace and access cover applies.

• Water coming through a ceiling or a stain spreading on a wall points to water leak detection for pipes in walls, floors and ceilings.
• Boiler pressure that keeps sinking back below 1 bar sends the search to the sealed circuit, the work of central heating leak detection.
• A meter dial still moving once the internal stop tap is shut is the cue for tracing a buried supply pipe leak.

West Country Leak Detection traces each of them in homes across the region, set out under leak detection across the South West; what a policy pays is always the insurer's decision.