Petty ex-wife refused insurance claim so I couldn’t see children at my house

I just wanted to share this tale of utter pettiness with everyone. At the time I was approaching divorce, and still living with my now ex-wife and our three young children (all under the age of seven) we had a leak in my eldest son’s bedroom. I didn’t notice this until she’d moved out, taking the children and without notice, as she was living in the room with him for a few weeks.

The leak was caused by a pipe that had been kicked out by teenagers outside the house, causing the water to come through the wall into the room. The paper was peeling from the walls, the room smelled really damp and the carpet was sodden. No amount of professional carpet cleaning would have fixed it, it had to be thrown out.

Anyhow, at my own personal expense I had the pipe fixed and a cage put around it so that it couldn’t be kicked out again – this was, apparently, necessary as many houses in our area had suffered similar malicious damage. This cost over £400 for the fitting of the cage and the repair to the pipe.

I then of course needed to repair the room, with a new carpet and wallpaper. I contacted my home insurance company to tell them of the leak and, because the insurance was a joint policy, they informed me that they needed my wife’s authorisation before proceeding with any claim. I notified her via text, and then by phone when she deemed to answer, and she refused to authorise the claim.

Let me remind you at this stage that this is a jointly owned house and she would be getting her share in the financial settlement. There was, or at least seemed to be, no reason for her to refuse the claim as it would be repairing her house too. Whether we sold the house, or whether I bought her out, a repaired and in tact bedroom would help her in that it would improve the value of the house. No, she refused. As I was obviously being hounded by the CSA at this stage, and paying off another debt caused by ex-wife (one I shan’t go into here because it only complicates matters) I couldn’t afford to just absorb the cost of redecorating the room, and replacing the carpet.

Now, here’s the rub; this is WHY she refused. When I was having contact with my children, through CAFCASS, my ex-wife refused to let me take them back to my house, the house they grew up in, because one of the rooms was damaged by water. I had to promise that I didn’t take them back to the house – where a large number of their toys were, because she didn’t want them to.

CAFCASS then filed their report, stating that one room in my house was damaged by flooding and wasn’t suitable for the children to visit – even though I had explained to CAFCASS why the room was still damaged, and the CAFCASS officer promised that either she wouldn’t mention the flood damage, or she’d mention in her report about my attempt to get it fixed and that my ex-wife had refused to allow it.

Guess what? That’s right, she mentioned the flood damage but there was not mention of why it was still damaged.

Now that is petty. My ex-wife was happy to allow her own property, her own house, to fall into disrepair just to stop my children coming there to visit, and CAFCASS lied through their teeth about it.

What makes people do this, when all they should be thinking of is their children and how they need both parents in their lives?