'HS2 works are flooding my Berkswell home'
BBCConstruction of the high speed railway HS2 is causing the flooding of a nearby property, the homeowner has claimed.
Iain Smith from Berkswell, in the outskirts of Coventry, said since HS2 started using land surrounding his property as a storage compound, his home had suffered multiple floods.
This week it was affected for the twelfth time in two years, he said.
HS2 said an investigation found no evidence works had caused the flooding.
The family has lived at the property in Solihull borough since 1999. Mr Smith said they never suffered from flooding until HS2 became neighbours.
"Any time I get rainfall of any amount I'm flooded," he said.
"It's a great worry because I don't know when I'm going to sleep if it rains overnight; whether I'm going to come into my lounge area and find that it's under water."
Mr Smith said an outdoor gravelled area had been left looking like a pond and his home had become mouldy, with plaster coming off the walls.
The rail company has built embankments around the property to mitigate disruption from its storage compound to local homeowners.
But Mr Smith believes that effectively places his property in a bowl.
"The main aspect of frustration is the lack of sympathy," he said.
An HS2 spokesperson said: "We take our responsibilities to local communities very seriously."
They added the company had commissioned an independent construction commissioner's investigation, as well as hydrological reports.
Mr Smith said: "I want my house returned to how it was.
"I want to be safe in the knowledge that it's not going to deteriorate day in day out, and I want to be compensated for the damage that I've had to suffer to date."
In a statement the company explained: "HS2 offered to cover the cost of further hydrological surveys, covering Mr Smith's property, and a cash settlement for initial damages was also offered, but these were both declined."
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