Amanda Pasquarello says the bathroom on the main floor of their Locust home is clogged.
“It just overflowed all over our main floor,” she said.
She says she hired a plumber and he told her the problem was the sewage under the dining room slab. According to the plumber, there is what we call a “belly” – basically, a slope where the sewage gets stuck and returns – and which would cost US$34,000 to fix.
Pasquarello says the guide comes with a new warranty: two to 20 years depending on the part of the project.
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“I’m upset. You know you pay a lot of money for a house. You want your house to be a safe and clean place for your children,” she said.
It’s unclear who – or what – is to blame for the problem.
Construction company True Homes completed construction of the home in 2016. Pasquarello is the second owner. She purchased the house in 2021 and had no problems until recently.
Still, Pasquarello decided to contact True Homes. The company stressed that its warranty and legal obligation had passed, but it still agreed to take a look. He confirmed the existence of a belly and offered a free repair option.
But Pasquarello doesn’t want that. First, it is a different solution than the one suggested by the plumber. And secondly, she would like a warranty or a new warranty for the repair work, something the builder would not provide and is not legally required to provide.
True houses told Action 9Jason Stoogenke covered sewer pipes for the first two years after this house was built. He emailed Stoogenke: “True Homes encourages homeowners to submit all claims for warranty review. For this home, ‘sewer service piping’ is included in the plumbing systems warranty for the first two years after construction. Unfortunately, the first time a sewer line backup was reported was almost 8 years after construction and the cause of the backup is unclear. Still, we offer a repair option at no cost. If the Pasquarellos have additional information for True Homes to consider, True Homes will review the information as it becomes available.”
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So Pasquarello isn’t sure what to do next.
“You buy a house, you expect it to be your home and that, living like that… it’s not fair,” she said.
Here’s what you should know if you have a sewer problem:
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You can see if your home warranty will cover the repair (if any).
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You can check with your insurance, but it’s likely your policy will cover backup damage but not repair the sewer lines themselves.
If you are considering legal action:
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In both Carolinas, you generally can’t sue if you knew (or should have known) about the problem three years ago.
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In North Carolina: You generally can’t sue once the house is six years old.
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In South Carolina: Eight years.
NC code requirements for all sanitary piping are covered in NCRC Chapter 30 2018.
(WATCH BELOW: Local senior must move out after dealing with sewage leaks in north Charlotte apartment)
