QUESTION

After a severe hailstorm my ceramic tile floors were under water for a few days. After the floors started drying we noticed that several floor tiles have become loose. My insurance claims that this is due to "wear and tear" rather that the floor being flooded. prior to the storm I had no loose floor tiles.

What is your opinion on this?

ANSWER

ANSWER - Generally speaking, if tiles are properly installed over a proper substrate, they won’t be damaged when subjected to a water category 1 flood.  Category 2 and 3 water can possibly contaminated porous materials that can possibly cause health issues.  Some natural stones can become discolored from the flood event, but they normally can be cleaned or restored by a professional stone restoration company.

If the tiles are not properly installed with proper movement joints and properly bonded to a proper substrate, then tiles can possibly be damaged from a flood event.

Depending on what state you are in, some insurance companies will honor claims even if the tile was not properly installed, as long as there is evidence that the flood event resulted in damages to the tiles.  Other insurance companies will deny claims of damaged tiles if the tile was not properly installed.

The only way to determine whether the tiles were damaged or not is to have a professional expert company such as CTaSC inspect the tile installation to look for evidence that would support the conclusion one way or the other.