The householders countered with their very own skilled – a licensed engineer – who had personally inspected the property and reviewed pictures, experiences, and different information. The engineer acknowledged the likelihood that the leak started unnoticed earlier than July 2019, however crucially, he argued that there was no clear proof of injury earlier than October 2018, when the coverage started. Particularly, he famous the absence of indicators sometimes related to long-term water intrusion: rotted wooden, swollen drywall, or widespread mildew progress.