Frost and water damage to cabins increased by 35 per cent last winter, figures from Finans Norge show. Almost 3,800 such injuries have been reported to the insurance companies, according to industry figures. Think people want to save electricity Power saving may be the reason, says If insurance’s communications manager, Sigmund Clementz. – There is quite a marked increase from last winter. We believe that expensive electricity may be part of the reason for these injuries, says Clementz. Communications manager at If, Sigmund Clementz. Photo: Pressefoto / If He thinks that some cabin owners have been used to having a certain warmth in their cabin during the winter. When electricity prices were raised, many people turned off the electricity to save money, says Clementz. – Cabins that have not been closed down before have been closed down this winter, he says. Can become an ice hockey rink inside But if you switch off the electricity and close the cabin, you have to know what you’re doing, emphasizes Clementz. – If you just turn off the heat, without shutting off the water intake to the cabin, it’s a disaster just waiting to happen, he says. The result can be ice in the pipes, and when the mild weather arrives, the living room and kitchen floor is full of water. When it gets cold again, the water freezes. – Then you simply have an ice hockey rink inside the cabin, he says. Many people do not discover the damage until a long time has passed, says Clementz. Went with a bang Gunn Kaspersen had an unpleasant encounter with the blasting cold this winter. When she arrived at the cabin in Drangedal during the winter holidays, the frost had done a lot of damage. This despite the fact that they had done what they could to protect the building against the cold. Gunn Kaspersen at the cabin in Drangedal, surrounded by his grandchildren Lucas, Aron and Julian. Photo: Privat Neither heaters nor shut off supply of water helped when King Winter set in in earnest. A little water left in a pipe was all that was needed. The tap in the kitchen was broken. So were parts of the fixtures in the bathroom, in addition to the fact that a pipe had come apart under the floor. – We heard that there was quite a lot of water when we turned on the water supply. Then we quickly realized that there had been frost, says Kaspersen. It cost them a few extra kroner, but she is happy that the water was turned off after all. – It could have been far worse, she says. Afterwards, they insulated further and emptied the facility thoroughly. – Now we’re crossing our fingers that it doesn’t happen again. Several cases of gross negligence Frost and water damage are covered by the insurance, but you have a duty to prevent and limit damage, according to the Insurance Contracts Act. If you have acted grossly negligently, the insurance companies can make a deduction. This means that you have to pay a larger or smaller part of the bill yourself. Things can quickly go wrong if you don’t take the supply of water seriously. Photo: Tryg Last winter was special because a great many claims were about frost and water damage. In some of the damage cases, gross negligence was exercised, which means that the cabin owners have not taken safety measures themselves, such as turning off the water intake. – If you do not take measures and secure the cabin, you risk having to pay a large part of the repair costs yourself. In some cases of frost last winter, we unfortunately cut off 15-20 percent due to gross negligence. In one case it was 50 percent, says Clementz.
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Think expensive electricity is the cause of an increase in frost damage to cabins – news Vestfold and Telemark – Local news, TV and radio
