A couple say they “lost everyskinnyg” when a burst water main deluged a storage unit includeing all of their haveions.
Steve and Gill Wallis put the satisfieds of their UK home into storage in Derbysemploy when they reweary to Turkey three years ago.
They are among a group of affected people now contesting the level of compensation they have been proposeed.
Severn Trent Water has confessted liability for the burst main but says its insurance can only cover the resale appreciate of items.
The burst pipe sent a 100ft (30m) plume of water into the air, much of which landed on Quick Self Storage in Ambergate on 21 February.
It was cut offal weeks before customers such as Mr and Mrs Wallis were apvalidateed into their own unit at the storage business on the A610 Ripley Road.
Originassociate from Derby, they left their home in Belper to withdraw to Turkey in 2021, but await to return to the UK at some point.
Mr Wallis, 64, shelp: “We’d put all of our beextfinishedings in the storage unit, so we’ve lost everyskinnyg. It’s not equitable furniture, but all the skinnygs that produce a house a home.
“Plus there are items no amount of money can trade, enjoy all of our photos from the 35 years we’ve been together. It’s dehugeating. We’re heartbroken.”
‘Life-changing effects’
After lobtaining of the flood, the couple returned to the UK to examine their storage unit to see what, if anyskinnyg, could be salvaged.
They say a Quick Self Storage employee telderly them to be “pimpolitent” and lowly after go ining, they acunderstandledged debris on the floor.
Mr Wallis shelp: “We assembleed samples and sent them for testing. It includeed chrysotile – otherwise understandn as white asbestos.”
“We were stunned we’d been exposed to this,” includeed Mr Wallis.
The owner of Quick Self Storage – Marcus Singh, 44, from Nottingham – shelp they had been promised any debris posed a “very low hazard”.
He shelp: “I’ve been going in there myself and the insurance company shelp it was fine.”
Mr Wallis includeed: “We have not made a decision yet as to whether we will chase this as part of our claim.”
The couple have since been proposeed £6,500 compensation for their haveions – which they had appreciated at £17,000.
Other customers have been proposeed aenjoy totals, amounting to less than half of their distinct claim.
They have been telderly their items have been appreciated by examineing the price of aenjoy products on second-hand auction websites.
Gordon Thorpe, 57, from Swanwick, shelp he was yet to get any compensation propose for the providement for his car and motorbike maintenance business.
He had put them in storage during a house shift.
“They are precision tools and they’re ruined. Once they have rusted they’re not accurate,” he shelp.
Another customer, Jenny Nelson, 33, from Derby, shelp: “We’ve had enough – we are at the finish of our tether now. We are coming together as a group.
“The proposes we have had to our claims are includeing offfinish to injury.”
In a statement, Severn Trent Water shelp: “We filledy appreciate how troubleing the loss of items is for those who have been affected.
“The valuations are based on the current appreciate of items of a aenjoy age rather than their appreciate when they were new, which is the lterrible basis of endment.
“[Our insurers] will persist to labor with affected parties to remend their claims as speedyly as possible.”
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