Before sunrise last Sunday morning the dog wanted to go out. While we were up, we headed down the cellar to check up on the cat's breakfast supply...and were greeted at the bottom of the cellar stairs with several inches of water.
After spending two hours carrying buckets of water up the stairs and making no appreciable difference in the water level, we finally got the sump pump out of the sump pump well and took it outside. After washing it out we found that a red silty mud had jammed the impeller. A good cleaning and it was back working.
But meanwhile...we had a wet cellar rug and all the stuff stored in the basement.
Like all good homeowners who had dutifully paid our insurance bills for nearly a quarter-of-a-century, we telephoned our insurance company, reported our very-first- ever claim, and received a reference number.
Like all bad insurance companies, two days later (about the time that the cellar was really beginning to smell)they declined our claim. They pointed out this exclusion...
"...water which backs up through sewer or drains or water which enters into and overflows from within in a sump pump, sump pump well or other type of system designed to remove subsurface water which is drained from the foundation area..."
They don't even have a sump pump rider available.
Other friends who had the exact same problem and other insurance companies were covered.
*sigh*
Have to go now and move more boxes and carry out more pieces of rug...
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To our readers: This would be a really good time to review your homeowner policy.
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