A pipe under your driveway breaks and spills water everywhere. You should not have to pay for this, right? Maybe you are thinking along these lines because your understanding is that it is the city’s responsibility or the water company’s responsibility.
Well, that is not necessarily correct because the responsibility can be both yours and partially or possibly your city and/or water company.
Who Is Responsible For Your Underground Water Leak?
The water lines running through your front lawn and under your driveway are yours. This means that if there is a leak anywhere in your yard it’s usually up to the owner of the property (that’s you) to have the issue fixed.
If the leak occurs in the main water line outside of your property then the water company or your city may be responsible for repairing it.
How Do You Find A Leak Under Your Driveway
There’s no easy way for a homeowner to find a leak under a driveway or any concrete slab. This is a job that requires specific tools and equipment that a professional plumber would have.
We recommend that as soon as you suspect a leak under your driveway that contact your plumber immediately.
How Much Does It Cost To Fix An Underground Water Leak?
The cost to repair any type of underground water leak depends on multiple factors.
- Where the leak is located
- How many leaks are there in the pipeline
- The method required to get to those leaks
- The amount of labor required to do the job
- The type and amount of material required
- Often there are two methods to repair any pipe leaks under concrete.
Trenchless method – Trenchless pipe repair is a great time and money saver for property owners. Not only does this technique avoid the destruction of concrete or other construction that the broken pipes may be laying under, but also reduces how long it takes to fix them.
Breaking through the concrete – This normally involves jack hammering through the concrete to get to the pipes that need repairing. Once they are fixed, there’s the additional cost then to repair the concrete driveway!
Does Homeowners Insurance Cover Water Leaks Under A Slab?
There are some insurance policies that will cover slab leaks and some have specific requirements for covering these types of water leak problems.
If a peril that’s covered by your homeowners insurance policy results in a plumbing leak under your slab creating a slab leak, your homeowners insurance policy might help pay to tear out and replace the slab and repair the water damage to your home. Covered perils typically include risks like fire, wind, explosions and falling objects. So, for instance, if a tornado damages your home and the slab, resulting in a slab leak or slab damage, a homeowners insurance policy that covers wind damage will likely help pay for repairs. – allstate.com
Slab leaks are very common here in the Atlanta, Ga. area.
If you have any questions about water leaks or are having some problems with it, call Atlantis Plumbing today at 770-443-8229. We are available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.