Dry summers spell danger for UK homes

Following a recent spate of dry years, the British Insurance Brokers'' Association (BIBA) is apparently anticipating a rise in the number of people claiming for damage to their homes.

Long, dry summers mean the foundations of homes can dry out which increases the risk of subsiding walls and floors. This is especially apparent in areas where the homes are often built from clay such as in London.

The physical signs include diagonal cracks on inner walls with a width of a few millimetres. Doors may become difficult to open due to cracks around them as well as cracks also appearing around windows.

Repairing this sort of damage requires tradesman and the costs varies up to around £30,000.

One action which home owners can take to eradicate this problem is to avoid planting trees and shrubs near to house foundations.

Such plants such moisture from the ground and add to foundation dryness so its best to plant them far away from houses.


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