There have been some spectacular pictures in the news of a sinkhole that opened up in Godstone, Surrey.
Picture by Eddie Mitchell
When the sinkhole appeared, the local authority declared a major incident and asked local residents to leave their homes. Who is responsible for the cost of emergency accommodation? It's quite likely to be the local authority. It is certainly the backstop. Section 175 of the Housing Act of 1996 deals with homelessness: "A person shall not be treated as having accommodation unless it is accommodation which it would be reasonable for him to continue to occupy."
Not surprisingly, cash-strapped local authorities aren't in a hurry to offer accommodation. Tandridge Council was quite clear: "Some residents have made their own arrangements for accommodation, while others have contacted us for advice and support. We have also advised residents to contact their insurance companies."
Thirty properties were evacuated as a precaution. Few insurers are likely to be involved. Policy cover is usually triggered when there is damage to a property. From the photos, there isn't damage to most houses. An insurer might choose to get involved if there is currently no damage, but damage is considered to be imminent. That usually means within the next 24 hours or so. Again, that doesn't seem to be the case here. However, at least one resident is in an Airbnb property, telling the media she had to "strong-arm" her insurers into sorting it out - not the most generous thank you for what was quite likely an ex-gratia payment.
Picture by Eddie Mitchell
Some insurance policies provide cover merely if an insured event occurs, regardless of damage. So, if the event occurs leaving a house inaccessible or unsafe but undamaged, alternative accommodation cover under these policies is triggered. A landslip can trigger cover in these circumstances. A subsidence event mostly won't. Subsidence requires downward movement of the site on which the house stands. From the photos, this applies in few, if any, cases. If considering a claim under the accidental damage cover in a policy, this usually requries physical damage to buildings.
Not all the residents who were asked to leave agreed to do so. The residents of two houses, both older males, said they thought their properties were safe enough to live in and stayed put. Despite the council's obligations, there have been reports in the press of some residents living in cars, so maybe the stay-putters decided they preferred the comforts of home.
It's believed that the collapse was caused by water from a burst water main washing away sandstone bedrock underneath a road. The geological formation in Godstone is known as a Folkstone Formation. As a regional spokesman for the British Geological Survey explained, this is characterised by a sequence of medium and coarse-grained, well-sorted, cross-bedded sands and weakly cemented sandstones.
The purity of the sane under Godstone made it attractive to mine. It was used in the glass-making trade and later across the UK as horticultural sand. the Wealden Cave and Mine Society says that sand deposits were mined between the 18th century and early 20th century - initially by underground mining under the village, later by open pits on nearby farmland.
Six families have subsequently been allowed to return home. Repairs to the road are expected to take a few months.
The question remains: whilst insurance policies don't cover alternative accommodation in the absence of damage, perhaps they should in the case of houses evacuated by authorities due to sinkholes. It's an eminently insurable risk and would generate positive PR for the industry.
