Graphic designer David Benqué, 40, and his partner Claire O'Brien, 42, say they lost £32,000 worth of belongings and have since shelled out £15,000 when freak flooding destroyed their south London flat.
Image: David Benque/My London)
A family who said they lost £47,000 after sewage flooded their home say Thames Water refused to compensate them.
Graphic designer David Benqué, 40, and his partner Claire O'Brien, 42, say they lost £32,000 worth of belongings when freak flooding destroyed their south London flat.
They claim they have since spent almost £15,000 replacing damaged items and relocating them, bringing the total spend to £47,000.
The couple say they are furious with Thames Water, who they say failed to give them compensation after a collapsed culvert caused the carnage in September 2021.
Thames Water has denied legal responsibility because "there were no previous problems with the sewer", thus claiming that they were not negligent. reports MyLondon.
Image:
David Benqué/My London)
Thames Water also reportedly asked the couple to sign a letter meaning they won't pay for 'non-restorable' items.
David and Claire say they refused to sign the letter and had to fork out £1,500 to dispose of the vandalized belongings.
David said: "I was alerted by the sound and the smell, something didn't seem right. I saw a torrent of water."
"The pipe that burst was under a container, so there was a lot of rubbish floating around.
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Image:
David Benqué/My London)
“I opened the door and saw that the entire staircase was like a waterfall. I closed the door and for a couple of seconds, my brain said I'd be fine.
"Then I knew it wasn't going to be okay, so I woke up my partner."
Once Claire was awake they grabbed the kids, their stuffed animals, and put an iPad on top.
David said he got his coat and his laptop, but the laptop later fell into the mud.
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Image:
David Benqué/My London)
David recalled: "The water was coming in through the door so we thought it was time to get out, then the door opened and let in a torrent of sewage.
"Our furniture started to float and then it got pretty intense."
the fire The brigade arrived when the water filled the basement.
David added: "I was carrying my five-year-old son, I saw the firemen so I crawled so they could see us.
"They helped my partner who was carrying the three-year-old boy and couldn't walk forward, the pressure was so strong that a firefighter took him."
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Image:
David Benqué/My London)
The couple's apartment was not the only one affected and other neighbors were rescued from their windows by the strong water pressure.
The next day, the extent of the damage could be seen and the costs began to pile up.
Thames Water said the family was not eligible for the hardship fund.
David said: "We are lucky to have family and friends who can help us, but now we are broke.
"There were a lot of annoying moments, but when you walk into your apartment and you see a book your kids like and it's covered in dirt.
"You could see things that were familiar, but everything is in the wrong place and everything is covered. Then we realized that they were not going to give us any money at all."
Textile designer Claire said: "Now that time has passed, it was actually a really traumatic event to wake up to a torrent of water rushing into your home.
"The trauma of seeing how much water was in our apartment, it just filled up like a bath. It's been really hard just the devastation, time and stress to get back on our feet and not have any Thames Water."
“We feel like criminals that it doesn't matter when it's their pipe that burst in our lives. A few hours earlier it might have been a very different story, but it was still pretty scary.
"The fact that it was sewage, it's toxic. Kids stuff is sentimental, they still talk about it all the time. It makes you think a lot of people might never get back on their feet."
"That really stuck with me, the total devastation, it was all gone in five minutes. It's a terrible thing for his family to go through. It's not our fault, it's not climate change, it's Thames Water."
A Thames Water spokesperson told The Mirror: “We understand how distressing sewer flooding is and we sympathize with anyone affected.
“In this case, the flooding was caused by a culvert collapsing causing sewage to spill onto nearby properties. Our engineers rushed to the scene and carried out the repairs as a matter of urgency.
"Investigations show that there were no previous problems with the sewer system that would have contributed to the collapse and as such Thames Water was not negligent and is not legally responsible for any damage caused.
“As with all sewer floods, we offered to clean and disinfect affected properties, including removing belongings that are too damaged to return to the property. To do this, we ask our customers to sign a document in which they acknowledge that we will not refund the withdrawn items.
"We encourage anyone affected by the devastating impact of sewer flooding to file a claim through their home insurance provider."
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