Flood victims' insurance fears (From The Wiltshire Gazette and Herald)

Flood victims' insurance fears

LANDFORD residents are hoping that insurance companies will pay out, after another bout of flooding affected a handful of homes.

Recent downpours have left homeowners on the private Latchmore Drove and Beech Grange estates counting the cost of heavy rain.

Many are now worried that insurance companies will question payouts, because homes have been flooded several times in the past few years.

Homeowner Peter Askey, who lives on the Beech Grange estate, said: "We've been here 16 years and are concerned because we have been flooded twice in the past three years."

Properties in Beech Grange have suffered problems as a result of blocked sewage pipes, while others have had trouble with surface water not draining away.

Now a sub-committee of concerned homeowners has been set up, to try and tackle the problems.

Landford Parish councillor John Martin said: "It is quite normal for garages and gardens to flood.

"Two cottages in Latchmore Grove were again badly affected.

"In the early '70s, when estates were built, sewage pipes were made out of pitch fibre.

"They are now corroding and not doing the job they were intended to do.

"The fact that the ground is boggy and floods easily does not help, and then surface water gets into the sewer and the culvert nearby is also blocked."

"The difficulty is the sewers - where it is a private housing estate, the sewers have not been adopted.

"Some residents are in the process of getting them relined but the culvert is not the responsibility of Southern Water."

Despite the fact that homes have not been built on a flood plain, residents say they dread hearing weather reports, in case more heavy rain is forecast.

A spokesperson for Salisbury district council said: "Salisbury district council, with Landford parish council, is endeavouring to resolve the problems being experienced by residents in Beech Grange.

"The district council has already conducted a camera survey of part of the drainage system and will be meeting surveyors shortly to discuss what could be causing the problem.

"When the source of the problem is known, the next step will be to identify who is responsible for solving that problem.

"Salisbury district council has been meeting the Highways Agency and the water authority to discuss the future maintenance of the drainage system."

Salisbury MP Robert Key has been working closely with Landford residents and said planning applications would not be passed if new homes were built at Beech Grange today.

"I think we all expect that, from time to time, exceptional weather gives rise to temporary flooding," he said.

"What is unacceptable for local residents is flooding that occurs on a regular basis, without any remedial action.

"I am very keen to assist and we shall keep up the pressure until the problem is resolved."