A homeowner has lost his bid for a storm damage payout after his insurer showed poor maintenance and faulty construction work caused the loss.

The claimant said damage to exterior rendering on his western wall and water staining on roof eaves last year was caused by wet weather.

He pointed to data showing 141mm of rainfall in July – the month before his claim – with a single-day record of 43.6mm.

But Lloyd’s Australia cited a report by its forensic engineer, who concluded the rainfall was not bad enough to have damaged the rendering, and cracking was instead caused by “the absence of adequate provisions” in the wall’s design to “minimise the build-up of stress resulting from such volumetric changes”.  

He said after initial cracking, long-term water ingress had occurred, leaving white mineral deposits known as efflorescence.  

The engineer said water staining on the eaves was consistent with evidence that nearby downpipes and gutters had been blocked.  

The property owner argued the assessment did not “adequately acknowledge” the bad weather’s impact, noting the affected wall was on the most exposed side of his home.

He said the workmanship on his home was verified at the time of purchase, and if there were failures in its construction, the damage would have been apparent earlier.  

But in a dispute ruling, the Australian Financial Complaints Authority says the engineer “provided plausible explanations for his position, including why there are white marks around the hairline cracks”.  

The authority says the evidence indicates the wall damage was not sudden but “occurred over a period of time”.  

It acknowledges the claimant made efforts to maintain the property but says the evidence indicates issues with upkeep of the eaves.  

“The extent of blocked downpipes and gutters is consistent with insufficient maintenance.”

It says the insurer is entitled to deny the claim under an exclusion concerning lack of maintenance.  

See the ruling here.