The Water Services Corporation has been ordered by a court to pay €8,826 to Elmo Insurance, appearing for client, Edwin Vella, whose basement was flooded as a result of a damaged pipe in the street.

The court heard how Mr Vella’s basement was flooded on November 11, 2004, causing damage to contents. The water came from a damaged WSC pipe.

Mr Vella noticed the leakage on a Friday evening. He reported it immediately, but workers did not turn up to carry out repairs until Sunday evening.

The WSC denied blame, saying the damage was caused by sewerage works further up the road.

In its deliberations, the court noted that the owner of the property where the WSC claimed the damage was caused had not been produced as a witness and was never called to assume responsibility.

Furthermore, WSC foreman John Vella had testified that the WSC crew had replaced an old, badly corroded pipe and the leakage stopped. 

In handing down judgement, Magistrate Francesco Depasquale expressed his disappointment at the WSC’s failure to resolve this issue sooner on the basis of what its own foreman had testified.

The court therefore ordered the WSC to pay Elmo Insurance €8,826 in compensation, plus interest from November 28, 2005.