I'll tell you the whole history. I feel I must tell someone! House #1 came back with a surveyors description that boiled down to - take the plaster off the front wall along the whole length, and then the builder will be able to quote you for repairs. We didn't like that, and dropped out. House #2 has the vendors from hell. Despite every effort on their part we'd still like to buy it. But the stopper has come from a third party - or several in fact. Every insurance company we've tried. We can't get building cover for it. We knew it would need re-wiring, and had planned this in to our budget. The vendor assured us that you don't need to bring old properties up to latest regs - and while that's true in law, it's downright misleading in fact. The insurance companies as one are demanding electrical certificates. Since some of the switches belong in an antique shop, they may have a point, and since it's thatched they have another one - but the gripping hand is they don't have to deal with us if they don't want to. The wiring isn't that ancient (it's all PVC) and I didn't think it was likely to burn the place down before we could get it done. But they want galvanised trunking! It occurs to me though that people do buy houses as renovation projects, and some of them are in far worse condition than this. So does anyone know an insurance company that will deal with a listed, thatched, timber framed building that does not have wiring to current standards? Andy

PVC cable has been in common use for the best part of 50 years. According to BASEC, most manufacturers give a life expectancy of 20 years when run without exceeding the rated temperature of 70C. Running at 80C will bring that down to seven years. You might want to look at MICC as an alternative. The higher initial cost may well be offset by the fact that it will be easier to install (although not necessarily easier to get looking good when surface mounted), it will satisfy any fire safety requirements and it has a life expectancy in excess of 100 years, so you won't need to rewire again. Colin Bignell

Insurance for a renovation project

Insurance for a renovation project - where can I get it?

Oct 19, 2013 62 Replies

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John Rumm 12 years ago

Since the wiki includes GPL copyleft statements, then there is nothing much that can be done directly to prevent it - the only real violation is not acknowledging the source.

Obviously one can name and shame them though...

(would you trust these professional electricians that need to crib from amateurs on the internet! ;-) )

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Piers 12 years ago

Thanks all - yes, I figured that after seeing the stranded t&e thread.

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meow2222 12 years ago

Copyleft (GNUFDL) etc is copyright with permission given to copy if certain terms are complied with. By failing to comply they're copying (c) content without permission, and can be dealt with the same way as any other copyvio . But I dont see much point, its not like we're making a living from it.

indeed

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