Barrie and Janet Waterfall were full of hope when they moved to Spain nine years ago.
Spanish retirement home, which is now uninhabitable But their dreams of a happy retirement have been shattered and their 21-year marriage has been brought close to breaking point - all because of a bitter dispute with their buildings insurer, Axa Spain.

Retired teacher Barrie, 67, and Janet, 68, face financial ruin. They own a property rendered uninhabitable because of structural damage caused by a leak from a water main. They cannot sell it and now owe more than £39,000 to banks, credit card companies and friends. The mounting debt is the result of a costly legal battle with Axa Spain,

which has involved them employing architects and surveyors. The couple have also had to rent an apartment for the past two years. Janet, a former senior administrator at the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons, has moved back to Lewes, East Sussex, to stay with friends because she is so distressed. Spanish builders have told the couple it will cost about 110,000 euros (£98,000) to repair the damage - money they do not have.

The builders want to inject industrial foam under the house to shore it up, which Barrie says will cost at least £40,000, rebuild the internal walls and replace the bathroom and kitchen.

The couple paid 158,000 euros (£144,000) for their 200-year-old three-bedroom terraced house in the market town of Xativa near Valencia with a 112,000 euros mortgage from BBVA in Spain.

Barrie, who was head of languages at a prep school in Dorset, says if it was repaired it would be worth only about 145,000 euros because of the drop in property prices.

In late 2007, the couple noticed small cracks in an arch in the hallway. These were repaired, but in January 2008 the cracks reappeared and the couple contacted Axa Spain, part of the multinational Axa Group.

The Waterfalls chose Axa because they trusted the brand and paid about 200 euros a year for joint buildings and home contents cover and had never made a claim.

Axa sent an assessor to review the damage, but within a week the claim was rejected.
The company said heavy rain on September 21, 2007 had caused structural movement in the house and the damage was not covered by their policy.
'Jan and I looked at each other in disbelief,' recalls Barrie. 'Axa had also chosen a date to blame for this so-called heavy rainfall that we knew had been dry, sunny and warm. It was ludicrous. We felt they were trying to wriggle out of paying.'
Days later, after a complaint from a neighbour who had water coming into his property, the town council sent workmen to dig up the road outside the Waterfalls' home.