How dental practices can avoid water damage

It has the potential to destroy specialist equipment and disrupt patient care. It costs British insurers around £2.5 million every single day.¹ It’s water damage, and it’s on the rise.

For dental practices across the UK, burst pipes and leaking appliances remain the most expensive cause of claims.² These claims, which insurers call ‘escape of water’, arise in the aftermath of water damage. If a practice is unprepared, water damage can leave patients and dental chairs hanging out to dry.

So, how can you reduce your practice’s risks?

With your practice’s water dependency in mind, here are some tips on how to reduce your risks of water damage:

1. Use a water shut-off device

In the event of a leak or a burst pipe, a shut-off device can reduce the impact of water damage. If your practice doesn’t have one, here are some suitable options for you to consider:

• Surestop stopcock & remote switch
  The Surestop stopcock is a replacement for a traditional stopcock. It’s connected to a remote switch, which can be placed up to two metres away from the pipeline. Rather than having to locate and turn a rusty and difficult stopcock to turn off your water, it’s as easy as turning off your lights. This device can be installed to your existing pipes by a plumber.

• Waterlock
  Using a sensor, WaterLock can automatically detect standing water, excess humidity and low temperatures if there is a burst pipe or a leak. Waterlock is attached to a wireless switch, which is easily accessible if you are in the practice. It also comes with an app, so you can control the main stopcock remotely.

• LeakSafe WaterSwitch 2
  Operated by mains or battery, you can use a control panel or wireless switch to turn off the mains supply. If your WaterSwitch 2 detects a leak, it automatically shuts off the water for you. You can also arrange a timer for your water supply, so it can be turned on and off at routine hours.

Did you know?

If you install a water shut-off device, it proves to your insurer that you are trying to reduce your risks of water damage. This is why, in the dental practice policy we provide, the excess is reduced to £0 for claims where a water shut-off device is installed and in use.

2. Come home time, switch off the mains

The longer a practice is left unattended (during weekends, bank holidays or overnight), the longer a leak will go undetected. To put that into perspective, last year, leaks in the UK produced enough water to fill 1,273 Olympic sized pools every day.³ To avoid prolonged damage, take extra measures such as:

• Sterilising your equipment before you leave, instead of overnight
• Turning off the main water supply before you leave (using a stopcock, or preferably a shut-off device)
• Making sure your practice isn’t left unattended for too long

3. Check damage in the pipeline

As time goes by, modern-day plastic is replacing traditional metal pipework. While this reduces building costs, the use of plastic components in your practice’s pipework could leave the plumbing more susceptible to leakage or bursts.

For good practice, it’s worth getting a fully qualified plumber to carry out regular maintenance checks to make sure everything is up to scratch.

Prevent what you can, insure what you can’t

For times where prevention isn’t enough, your practice insurance is there to compensate the damage caused by escaping water.

If extensive damage destroys your practice, consider a policy that provides you with a back-up plan, such as an emergency mobile dental clinic – this will allow you to carry on treating your patients while you wait for your practice to become operational again.

Every practice is different, so it’s important that your practice insurance policy reflects the unique risks that yours could be exposed to. For the key areas of cover to consider, have a look at our dental practice policy guide.

Please note, clicking to view the various shut-off devices will take you away from our website. We are not responsible for the content on external sites.

¹Insurance Hound, 2018
²Lloyd & Whyte claims,  2017-2018
³Water UK, 2017-2018