Insurance claim for undisclosed fire damage?

[Critter7r]

In Michigan, can we file a homeowners insurance claim to repair damage from a previous fire that was poorly repaired and not disclosed when we bought the house?

To be fair, the house is a hundred years old and it's very possible that the previous owners did not know about the damage. Also, the damage may be as much as 50-60 years old.

A crack developed beneath an upstairs window that appeared to have formed due to moisture behind the drywall. When I removed a section of drywall, we found serious fire damage and sub-standard repairs. And poorly repaired fire damage explains a lot of the issues we've been experiencing with the house.

The other option I'm considering is that there's a clause in the title warranty company policy that states something to the effect that they will cover a claim resulting from our need to repair or replace any part of the structure due to previous repairs done without the proper building permits. And I'm certain that the repair work that was done, was not done after getting a permit, and certainly was not inspected.

So ... is something like this a homeowner's insurance issue? Or a Title Company claim?


edit: we've owned the house for about 2 years now.

 

[FlyingRon]

Your homeowners insurance is not going to cover damage that occurred prior to the policy being in effect, even if you only discovered it recently.

As for going after the other owner, you probably realize that is futile. You'd have to know he knew about the damage and failed to disclose it.

Absent seeing the policy, I can almost guarantee that you are misinterpretting what the title insurance coverage here. This would handle the case where the local jurisdiction comes in and said "Hey, you put this up without a permit, tear it down" or the like. Not that you don't like the quality of the unpermitted work done.

 

[Critter7r]

Thanks for the quick response ...

Your homeowners insurance is not going to cover damage that occurred prior to the policy being in effect, even if you only discovered it recently.

I understand that part, but what about damage that occurs since the policy was in effect, that requires the previous damage to be repaired before the current damage can be repaired? The roof above that upstairs window has leaked into that previously fire-damaged wall. The wall has damage from the current leak that can't be repaired properly without fixing the fire damage.

As for going after the other owner, you probably realize that is futile. You'd have to know he knew about the damage and failed to disclose it.

Yeah, and I seriously doubt that they had any more than a sneaky suspicion that there might have been some issues, but not specifically what they were.

Absent seeing the policy, I can almost guarantee that you are misinterpretting what the title insurance coverage here. This would handle the case where the local jurisdiction comes in and said "Hey, you put this up without a permit, tear it down" or the like. Not that you don't like the quality of the unpermitted work done.

I'll have to find the paragraph in the policy and quote it. Your interpretation seems pretty reasonable, but I seem to remember them specifically mentioning the situation you described above in a separate paragraph.

 

[adjusterjack]

I understand that part, but what about damage that occurs since the policy was in effect, that requires the previous damage to be repaired before the current damage can be repaired? The roof above that upstairs window has leaked into that previously fire-damaged wall. The wall has damage from the current leak that can't be repaired properly without fixing the fire damage.

First we have to determine how the water damage to the wall occurred. If it appeared suddenly during one rainstorm because of a roof leak, then the water damage to the wall would be covered. If it was a long term leak that gradually damaged the wall, it wouldn't be covered.

For this example, let's assume that the water damage is covered.

Now we determine the extent of the damage.

If it requires replacing drywall (or plaster or whatever) and paint (or whatever), that's fine.

What do you see by way of fire damage when you expose the inside of the wall?

 

[Critter7r]

First we have to determine how the water damage to the wall occurred. If it appeared suddenly during one rainstorm because of a roof leak, then the water damage to the wall would be covered. If it was a long term leak that gradually damaged the wall, it wouldn't be covered.

For this example, let's assume that the water damage is covered.

Now we determine the extent of the damage.

If it requires replacing drywall (or plaster or whatever) and paint (or whatever), that's fine.

What do you see by way of fire damage when you expose the inside of the wall?

And even though we've been in the house for a little over 2 years, I suspect the water damage was happening way before then, and an insurance adjuster would likely be able to determine that as well.

Probably not going to be able to take that tack.

I'll post the quote from the title insurance company tomorrow.