Gas mains has damaged my Sewage drain. Help please?

[funkyphantom]

Hi,
I think I have a bit of a strange one here, and please forgive me if I have posted on the wrong forum.
It all started six months after we moved into our new family home (8years ago now). I noticed my main sewage drain was blocked. So i called someone out to come and unblock it. He said that the drain has probably began to collapse, and it would need repairing, which would be costly. Having just had our first born, and with a second on her way, we didn't have much money and it became my 'job' to unblock the drain, which to be fair I only needed to do twice a year as it took a good while to block. So wasn't too bad. Over the last year or so, it has become blocked more frequently so I decided to call my insurance who then sent someone out, who put a CCTV camera up there, and noticed a GAS MAIN going straight the way across my main sewage outlet. This is quite obviously, and there isn't any doubt that this is causing the blockage thats been plaguing me for the last 8years!
The gas board are coming out tomorrow to come and put right what they damaged all those years ago.
My question is, would I be entitled to claim my insurance excess back from the gas board? And would it be at all possible to claim any sort of compensation? Not least for the company I called out and paid £80 for unblocking my drain when i first moved in, but compensation for my inconvienience unblocking the drain, and having to alter the lawn because it got ruined when the sewage came up through the manhole? If so, where would I start? Should i mention it to the guys that come out tomorrow, or write a letter to the gas board explaining my problems?
Kind Regards
FP

[bluebottle]

Re: Gas mains has damaged my Sewage drain. Help please?

Hello Funky Phantom and welcome to Legal Beagles.

This is a somewhat unusual case and it is possible you may need a legal professional to advise you on this. See if you have a Community Law Service office in your locality or CAB. Failing this, find a solicitor locally who can advise you. Most offer an initial 30/60-minute consultation free of charge. For solicitors local to you, go to the Law Society website at http://www.lawsociety.org.uk.

[Bill-K]

Re: Gas mains has damaged my Sewage drain. Help please?

Hi and welcome, Funky Phantom. Yeah, this is not one of our 'usual' problems !!!

Just my personal opinion, but it sure seems to me that you should be able to obtain some redress for what must clearly be a failure on the part of EITHER...
The gas 'transporter' (as opposed to the 'supplier') - probably British Gas, but that's just my guess. Essentially, whoever was responsible for putting the gas pipe down there - OR
The firm responsible for laying the sewage/drainage pipe - probably the firm which built your house.

My guess is that one of two things have happened.

EITHER - the firm responsible for laying whichever utility pipeline was FIRST put there - failed to correctly and/or accurately register its existence to the necessary authorities, OR
The firm responsible for laying the SECOND utility pipeline failed to correctly and/or accurately check the required records for the existence of that pipe, OR
The firm responsible for laying the SECOND utility pipeline failed to correctly and/or accurately install the damned pipe !!!

I would suggest that you don't give away too many of your reasons for wanting to know, just yet, but that you seek all the info you can on this side of things.

Hopefully, someone here may be able to help you with that, as it's not my particular line - but I hope I've helped a little.

[funkyphantom]

Re: Gas mains has damaged my Sewage drain. Help please?

Thank you very much for your help.
I was talking to my neighbour about this the other day, and he knows exactly what happened.
Around 10 years ago (2 years before i bought the 1930's house) The gas board 'moled' a new plastic gas pipe from my neighbours house straight to the property that we had bought. Nothing was mentioned when i bought the house, and, unfortunately it never showed up on the 'searches' we did when we bought the house. My neighbour said he told the person who we bought the house off but he failed to tell me. The person we bought the house off only owned it for a few months, renovated it, and then sold it on to us. Before that an old lady owned the property and has now since passed away.
Would I need to pay a solicitor or would he work on my behalf, and then take a percentage out of any compensation (if any) ?
I might give CAB a call after the kids go to school.
Thanks
FP

[bluebottle]

Re: Gas mains has damaged my Sewage drain. Help please?

Try CAB or the Community Legal Service first. If you get no joy, then go on the Law Society website, using the link in my post above, and find a local solicitor who gives a free 30/60-minute initial consultation.

[funkyphantom]

Re: Gas mains has damaged my Sewage drain. Help please?

Thanks,
I've just been to CAB, and to be fair the old lady that listened to my story was sympathetic, but didn't really tell me what to do next. She suggested i get in touch with national grid and speak to them. She also gave me a sheet about the small claims court, and sent me on my jolly way.
National Grid are now at my property digging the drive up, so they have obviously accepted responsibility and hopefully I'll have a sewage drain that actually works soon.
I can't get over the fact that, for the last 8 years, I have been unblocking it thinking it was a 'collapsed drain' and all this time its been the National Grids fault for pulling their pipe through my drain! I feel I need some kind of compensation for all my work, and the very fact that I haven't really let my kids play in the back garden for fear of them 'messing' in the sewage. I have also had to dig some of my lawn away and put some slate at the bottom of my steps where the sewage 'seeps' down. All in all, i'm having a fantastic day! :P
Regards
FP

[funkyphantom]

Re: Gas mains has damaged my Sewage drain. Help please?

Hi,
Things are moving fast, and to be fair, I'm very happy with the way things are being dealt with.
Ive just had a phone call from National Grids 'claims team' and they have said I am able to claim compensation for any bills i have had to pay which means I'm ok for the insurance excess of £250. They have also told me to claim for my inconvenience, i.e Clearing the drain for the last 8 years, not being able to allow the kids to play in the garden, loss of earnings for today etc etc.
My question is, how do I put a price on all this inconvenience?
Kind Regards
FP

[funkyphantom]

Re: Gas mains has damaged my Sewage drain. Help please?

Anyone?
Thanks

[Celestine]

Re: Gas mains has damaged my Sewage drain. Help please?

LOL Well I'd say....start high and see what happens.


This is a very major mistake and it sounds like they are taking full responsibility for it.

So work out approx how many times you have had to unblock your drain. How long the job took and charge £30-50 p/h.

Also decide on an inconvenience value. Garden inaccessible etc.

If it were me, I'd try asking for 2-4K!

[funkyphantom]

Re: Gas mains has damaged my Sewage drain. Help please?

I was thinking around that sort of figure, so at least I'm not miles out.
Thanks

[funkyphantom]

Re: Gas mains has damaged my Sewage drain. Help please?

Hi,
Im having a bit of a struggle with this one. The drain has been repaired, and the National Grid 're-instatement' team (i.e sub-contractors) have been out to fill in the hole and to re-lay the concrete slabs to finish the job off nicely. OR SO I WAS TOLD! The subcontractors have made a complete mess of it, and haven't even bothered to lay any slabs back down. They have just filled the hole with concrete, and drawn lines on top to make it look like slabs!! Further more they haven't even brushed up to make the job look anything like tidy! I've been pulling my hair out. I have complained to National Grid and they are sending someone out to have a look on Saturday.
Now I've got that off my chest I'd like to come to the real reason I'm here.
I asked to be compensated for all the inconvenience of 8 years of this torrid story. (please see my first post for details) The claims team sent me an email yesterday saying that, in order for me to be compensated, I must send to them invoices and receipts of my outlay. I have no receipts as I have always unblocked the drain myself. What about my time and effort? Or the very fact that I haven't been able to send the kids out to play in the back garden, or for the stench we've had to put up with inside and out?
Please could you advise me on where to turn to next?
Kind regards
FP

[funkyphantom]

Re: Gas mains has damaged my Sewage drain. Help please?

Ok, a quick update. I have been contacted by the claims team today, and offered a grand total of £400 compensation! Which i feel completely insulted by. Apart from telling them this, what should my next step be?
Kind regards
FP

[labman]

Re: Gas mains has damaged my Sewage drain. Help please?

I think you should tell you that is about one tenth of the minimum you were prepared to accept. Take photos of the shoddy work.

If you could make a list of the ways in which this has inconvenienced you, I'm sure we can put together a powerful letter to encourage them to rethink their offer.

[CleverClogs]

Re: Gas mains has damaged my Sewage drain. Help please?

[labman]

Re: Gas mains has damaged my Sewage drain. Help please?

Brilliant, I'd not heard that in ages!