Sudden or gradual? The question behind most water damage claims

The difference

Sudden and accidental means something broke and released water all at once: a supply line that split in a freeze, a washing machine hose that burst, a water heater tank that ruptured. These are the losses a standard policy is designed to cover, subject to the deductible.

Gradual means water escaped a little at a time over weeks or months: a drip under the sink, a toilet seal that seeped into the subfloor, a pinhole leak in the crawl space. Policies usually exclude that kind of damage, and often the rot and mold that come with it.

How an adjuster tells them apart

• Stains with rings or layers, soft or rotted wood, and established mold point to a long-running leak.
• A clean split in a pipe, a fresh flood of water and a known cold night point to a sudden loss.
• Timing matters. If the loss shows up the morning after a hard freeze, write down the date and the low temperature. Our Newberry freeze history and the freeze center list recent cold nights from NOAA and NWS data.

Freeze losses sit in between

A pipe that freezes and bursts is sudden. But policies often include conditions about keeping the house heated, or shutting off and draining the water, when the house is unoccupied. Insurers can deny freeze claims when the home was left without reasonable heat or the water was not shut off and drained during a long absence, so check your policy's conditions. The Insurance Information Institute suggests keeping the house at 65°F or warmer in a cold snap.

What to keep

• Photos and video of the damage before cleanup, with the date.
• The failed part (pipe section, hose or valve).
• The plumber's invoice stating what failed and why.
• A note of the weather: the date, the overnight low and how long it stayed below freezing.

Prevent the gradual kind

Check under sinks, around toilets and the water heater, and in the crawl space a few times a year. A water bill that jumps with no change in use can mean a hidden leak. The U.S. EPA's WaterSense program suggests checking the water meter during a period when no water is being used; if it moves, something is leaking.