New data from the National Financial Ombud Scheme South Africa has highlighted how often property-related insurance disputes hinge on the distinction between sudden water damage and longer-term maintenance problems.

According to the NFO Annual Report 2025, motor vehicle insurance accounted for 35.4% of finalised non-life complaints, followed by homeowners’ insurance at 27.5% and commercial insurance at 12.1%. Within homeowners’ insurance, acts of nature accounted for 42% of complaints, followed by bursting of water apparatus, such as geysers, at 15%.

In the homeowners’ insurance category, the report notes that the leading cause of complaints was the rejection of claims based on gradual deterioration, lack of maintenance, or wear and tear. It was also the highest rejection reason in this category in 2024 and increased by 17.5% in 2025.

The data points to a wider property risk that homeowners, building owners, contractors, facility managers, and HVAC professionals can no longer treat as incidental.

Moisture damage often develops slowly and out of sight. A home or building may experience a leak, storm event, burst pipe, or period of high humidity, but the visible damage may only appear much later. By then, mould, corrosion, plaster damage, swollen timber, or failing finishes can start to look like deterioration rather than the result of a single event.

That is important because moisture does not respect neat insurance categories. Condensation in ducts, blocked HVAC drain pans, poorly ventilated plant rooms, damp ingress through ageing seals, or moisture trapped in walls and ceilings can all create gradual damage patterns. Over time, these can affect indoor air quality, mechanical systems, building finishes, stored goods, and long-term asset value.

This is why moisture control needs to move from reactive maintenance to planned building risk management.