Unfounded & False Report from an Old Mutual Contractor

To whom it may concern

Good day

I am writing to you as a tenant residing at a property in Bothasig, Milnerton for the past twelve months.

Regrettably, I find myself in a disagreement with my landlord concerning a mould issue that has arisen within the property.

This disagreement pertains to the financial responsibility for addressing the mould problem. The mould developed in the bathroom around mid July 2024. I initially cleaned the mould with mould buster spray in an effort to mitigate the issue but unfortunately the mould returned in September 2024 and I took the appropriate measures to inform the landlord of this situation.

Nevertheless, the mould reemerged. I instantly informed the landlord, who attempted to file a claim with her insurance provider. I understood that such claims typically fall outside the scope of standard coverage; however, I was open to any potential solutions.

It was not surprising when the insurance company confirmed that mould issues were indeed excluded from their coverage.

What did come as a surprise, however, was that the contractor dispatched by Old Mutual insurance merely conducted a cursory visual inspection of the mould without employing any tools or investigating the structure for possible leaks or obstructions.

The contractor further asserted that the mould was a result of “long showers taken by me and my son and us not opening the window.” His reported further said the bathroom and the entire property is well ventilated which is totally not true because the entire property has no ventilators except windows which of course are intermittently opened from morning till late for obvious safety reasons during night time they have to be closed as the bathroom has a slide window. I showed the contractor other areas in the house that is also affected by mould (bedroom and kitchen) and he dismissed as dust or that it could be that the kitchen area is affected by the bathroom moisture too.

This conclusion was surprising to me and highly offensive as it is inaccurate and no physical assessment of the property other than a cursive visual check (i.e checking the roof above the bathroom, assessment of ventilation systems, HVAC, and plumbing, air sampling: Collecting air samples to detect mould spores. Surface sampling: Swabbing or tape-lifting surfaces to identify mould growth. Bulk sampling: Collecting physical samples of materials for laboratory analysis. of the mould or tools were employed in reaching this determination.

I expressed my dissatisfaction to the landlord and assured her of my commitment to proper bathroom ventilation. I primarily reside with my son, who is in primary school and we do not engage in “long showers,” and most definitely do open windows for ventilation. This is an integral part of my daily routine.

The landlord appears unwilling to conduct any additional inspections to investigate whether the mould may be attributable to structural issues. Instead, she is utilizing the report from the contractor and denial of the insurance claim to place full responsibility on me.

I believe I have fulfilled my responsibilities as a conscientious tenant by utilizing the mould spray; however, the recurrence of this issue may indicate a more significant underlying problem. It is unjust for the landlord to threaten deductions from my deposit for any further costs and she came to the conclusion based on the report submitted to her by the Old Mutual contractor.

I have consistently ensured proper ventilation and maintained the property in excellent condition. Therefore, I should not be held accountable for maintenance issues related to the property not unless a qualified mould specialist, using proper tools to check for the issue is employed.

Yours Sincerely

Zuki Bullet

This is the report from Old Mutual :

We refer to your claim intimated under policy number *** in respect of the damage to your private property. We have concluded the claim validation and the inspection of the damages revealed the following: 1. The walls and ceiling in the bathroom is mouldy. 2. The black mould on the ceiling and the walls next to the window is very wet. 3. This is due to long showers and poor ventilation. 4. The window is a slider and is adequate to ventilate the bathroom but if the user does not open the window and let hot steam out whilst having a shower and leave it closed, then the walls and ceiling will definitely stay mouldy. 5. The mould is not due to storm or leaks. 6. This damage happened gradually over a period of time. Based on the aforementioned it is evident that the damage claimed for occurred gradually over a period of time due to wear and tear and lack of maintenance. We specifically refer you to the Buildings Section of the Allsure policy wording: “ 6. Building Section 6.10 What we do not insure under this section Under this section, we will not compensate you for any of the following: 6.10.1 Gradual damages We do not cover loss or damage caused by or arising from any of the following: 6.10.1.1 Wear and tear. 6.10.1.2 Any cause that happens over a period of time like rust, mildew, corrosion or decay. 6.10.1.5 Depreciation or any other gradually operating cause. 6.10.2 If you do not maintain your private home We do not cover any damage caused by your private home not being maintained. “ In view of the above the entire claim is therefore rejected by Old Mutual Insure. If you are not satisfied with the outcome, you are entitled to: 1. Submit your complaint in writing to our Internal Arbitrator at *** an impartial professional who will conduct a quick and efficient independent investigation of your complaint. 2. Following the internal arbitrator review and consideration you may thereafter approach the offices of the National Financial Ombud Scheme South Africa (NFO) or FAIS Ombudsman and the contact details are as follows: Email: *** or *** Time barring provision We kindly refer you to your Allsure Policy Wording stipulating the following: “ 3. General Terms, Conditions and Exclusions 3.5.9 If we reject your claim We may accept or reject all or part of your claim. 3.5.9.1 If we reject your claim, you have 90 days from receiving the rejection letter to object to our decision. You must write to us and give reasons for your objection. If you are out of time, you may not object to our decision. 3.5.9.2 If your objection is not successful, you have 6 months from the end of the 90- day period to serve a summons on us. If you do not summons us in this period, we will have no obligations to you under this policy. “ All our rights remain reserved, including the right to elaborate upon the content of this letter and/or rely on any other ground of declinature at any stage before or after the institution of legal action. Should you have any queries in this regard, please feel free to contact me between 08:00 and 16:30. Yours sincerely, Jo-Anne Sagadaven : Claims Centre of Excellence | Old Mutual Insure Limited Designation : Non-Motor Claims Negotiator Telephone number : *** Email Address : *** Authorised Financial Services Provider