Spare wheel bay very damp and mold on rear seat + seatbelts

[skinjob]

Today I noticed 'fresh' mold on the bottom of the front nearside/passenger seat belt, on the rear nearside seat belt and also on the rear nearside passenger seat.
Checking further the spare wheel bay was very damp, but the internal carpets seem to be dry.
I have had problems in recent weeks where the windows got misted up with only the shortest journey and it didn't make much difference whether I had air-con or the heater on or off.
The windows would demist with the blower on but the effect didn't last long.
I recently had my rear bumper replaced and noticed afterwards that I could fit a pound coin on it's side in a gap between the top of the bumper and the bottom of the rear light above it but was assured this wouldn't be a problem.
Is that right?
Could this gap be the cause of the water ingress?

 

[Carlosfandang0]

The bumper cover itself shouldn’t let any water in anywhere as it’s just a trim cover, there are vents either side under the bumper cover to the rear of the rear wheels, one of these may be damaged or the rear light not seated properly maybe, why was the bumper replaced? It may be coincidence that the bumper was replaced and it could be the known water ingress points such as the wiring boots at the top of the boot opening, did you notice the misting before the bumper was replaced??

 

[skinjob]

The bumper was replaced after a guy ran into me.

He caused minimal damage but being a bit OCD about these things I let him pay for a replacement.

".....did you notice the misting before the bumper was replaced?"

Can't say I did but if it was there it deffo wasn't as bad.

 

[Adurm]

Check your tail lights for moisture inside. I too would lean towards a bad or dirty seal on one of those.

 

[oreozzy]

Do you have a sunroof? My Alltrack had a pool of water in the spare wheel well and turns out it was the Sunroof not draining properly. They had to replace the roof lining as well (luckily under warranty at the time). There should also be a current recall (here in Australia at least) for the sunroof drainage pipes.

 

[southpawboston]

Lots of people have mentioned here about leaks from the positive pressure vents located behind the bumper skin on the left and right sides, especially if there's been rear end collision damage and the vents don't seat perfectly.

Other sources of leaks can be the rear hatch hinges, the 3rd brake light/washer unit, and the taillight seals.

 

[JulianMcGrath]

Hello guys, I have a similar problem... What is the best solution? I watched so many tutorials on this topic and I really hate that none of them work. How crazy is the fact that there are so many people online who are acting like professionals for everything... I hate people like that and when it comes to something like mold I think that it would be better to call the professionals who will inspect your house and get rid of everything.

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https://www.damagecontrol-911.com/services/mold-remediation/