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ABOUT THE CLAIM
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A homeowner complained to their insurance carrier about a tall retaining wall at the back of their property. The wall creates a terrace with two parking spaces below, accessible by a back alley. The policyholder’s primary concern was that the retaining wall appeared to have moved.
ABOUT THE INVESTIGATION
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Immediately, Guardian Group, Inc. sent one of its engineers to investigate the matter. In addition to a physical inspection, Guardian’s expert consulted prior weather data, historical aerial shots of the property, and municipal records. The wall itself, exceeding six feet in height, consisted of stacked 8 x 8” treated lumber that was secured with vertical steel rebar. Both the wall and its (non-compliant) guard rail were noted to be out-of-plumb vertically and the wall had an alignment displacement at its center. An accumulation of soil along the property line’s chain link fence was also noted.
ABOUT THE CAUSE & ORIGIN REPORT
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Guardian Group, Inc. never comments upon issues of coverage. The purpose of a good cause and origin report is to plainly lay out the facts and the science so that both the insurance carrier and the insured can understand exactly what happened and why. On this particular claim, while it was important to point out for safety reasons that the wall needed to be rebuilt, it was also important to note that the high wall was a demonstrably recent improvement to the property and one that was not permitted. According to records, this un-permitted construction probably occurred concurrently with other (permitted) remodeling work. On the wall, no tie-backs, deadman, or other support were apparent. Only the rebar was resisting the lateral loading from the soil or the parked vehicles. According to Guardian Group’s property claim expert, while the wall did not appear in immediate danger of collapse, it behooved stating that vehicles should no longer park in the terrace. It had to be said that any reconstruction of the wall ought to be completed under the auspices of a licensed design professional, inclusive of a proper permitting process, and the soil accumulation along the fence-line ought be considered in the retaining wall’s reconstruction.
ABOUT GUARDIAN GROUP, INC.
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When your property claims require construction and engineering expertise, there is no time to be wasted. That’s why the Property & Casualty Group at Guardian Group, Inc. always responds and delivers in a timely fashion. When you and your insureds need to know exactly what happened and why, you can count on the time-tested diligence and over 30 years’ experience of Guardian Group, Inc. Kindly call on the forensic engineering and construction experts at Guardian today.