Can we get indemnity insurance for a garage

[MLew32]

We are in the process of purchasing a house with a detached double garage. We visited the solicitors last week and found that the garage (planning permission granted in 1990) was built on top of the mains sewers pipes. This was done by the owner before the present ones. Our solicitor is contacting the water authority to see if this presents a large problem to us!
We would like to know if it's possible to purchase indemnity insurance if ever the pipe burst and the water authority required us to knock down the garage. Also is there any way of finding out if the builder had consulted the water authority before commencing work?

[buildersmate]

You are using a solicitor so that is far better than any informal opinion you will get on here.
Modern main water pipes don't have the habit of bursting so I wouldn't worry on that account.
It is unlikely that a water company could force this scenario at your expense - it depends what the easements says that gives them permission to run pipes in your land in the first place.
It is very unlikely that the builder consulted with the water company because permission just would not have been granted. The process should have occurred as part of the planning application with the water company as a consultee.
Things have changed in the last 20 years with these companies (they now run themselves on commercial lines) - nowadays there are clear rules about how far away from sewer or water pipes buildings must be. This often causes problems because it prevents a landowner constructing a dwelling close to a boundary edge (because there is a pipe in the public highway just the other side of the hedge). The reason is NOT in case the pipe breaks (as you are asking to insure for) but because digging for foundations may well disturb the pipe. Being 20 years ago, that is (and was) clearly not something that went wrong for your builder.

[themas]

1. I live near a 48 inch water main, which did fracture - there was a major flood. So it can happpen, although it is very rare.

2. It used to be possible to get indemnity insurance covering what you ask (I was involved in getting it about 30 years ago for another section of the same water main), but I don't know whether it is still possible. One problem is that the amount of indemnity you want will increase over time as demolition & rebuilding costs increase, so you may find it difficult to get what amounts to an open-ended commitment from the insurer.

3. As buildersmate says, whether the water company could make you pay for demolition & rebuilding will depend on the wording of the easement. Your solicitor must make sure this is obtained.