Water Damage Caused to Downstairs Unit Due to Freeze Damage

[aka95001]

My question involves a condominium located in the State of: CT
Deer folks,
i am new to this forum who has recently faced an issues with freeze damage caused by my tenant. The tenant left the unit and she left the heat at 45-55 per my verbal communication, she was gone for two days.. the temperature has been really low in the past few days..
Therefore there was damage caused by unit and to unit below. the association manager called me and mentioned significant damage was caused to downstair unit and i am responsible for $10K as part of their deductible and i have to pay for my own repairs it will not be covered by the association.
I have landlord coverage, and the estimator came and declined the claim. He said i was not covered because i don't have coverage amount.
I called my insurance agent he said i should be covered.. however he said it is my problem that the insurance company wont cover it..
we went back and forth.. he has $10k coverage for material and i argued why i would need coverage for 10k in my apartment when i only have appliance that are easy to replace. why would i not have structural coverage which should be the main personal i am getting insurance in addition to liability.
also why what is the role of the association, we are owners of the units and pay $220 per month, i did not sign up for $10k deductible. can i file an E&O against the insurance agent who claims i should be covered and apparently is not competent to know what is selling his customers..
How do i push back on the association for the $10k which was not my commitment and i would think that my monthly fee should cover condo assurance..
i am estimating $15k in total liability ($10k from association and $5k for my unit) maybe more..
is there any legal action i can take? anything against the tenant since the freeze damage was caused by her.
last statement association wants electrical bill from my tenant, should i be concerned.. there is nothing i see in them that can help make their or my case..
Regards,
aka95001

[jk]

Gotta love how you blame everbody else.

anything against the tenant since the freeze damage was caused by her.

really?

The tenant left the unit and she left the heat at 45-55 per my verbal communication,

it would appear you were notified of her lack of presence and she followed your directives regarding the heat. How can you even suggest the tenant caused the problem?\

How do i push back on the association for the $10k which was not my commitment and i would think that my monthly fee should cover condo assurance..

it would appear you have a problem not reading contracts. I know of no COA where your payments include insurance on your unit. If you had read your COA contract, you would know what it provided for the payments.

as to your insurance;

this would be a claim under liability so again, why isn't it covering the damage?

[mihamih]

You have to fight the insurance. Call them up and threaten to sue them. Oftentimes that gets them to listen. If they don't listen call a few lawyers and find one that would threaten to sue them. What insurance company do you have? Name could suggest if they are pulling one on you or not. Also google insurance company name and see what similar problems others have had and how they were able to resolve.

Forget going against the COA. First of all this is how we do also and our deductible is 10K also. Never had to slap it on anyone but honestly if push comes to shove I'd make owner pay $2500 and association will cover the rest. They don't have to though. Also if you win a lawsuit against the association, you and all the other owners will pony up the award money. So it's like suing yourself.

Like jk said, your tenant followed your instructions. You have no claim against her.

[adjusterjack]

as to your insurance;

this would be a claim under liability so again, why isn't it covering the damage?

Simple.

He wasn't negligent.

For his liability coverage to pay he'd have to have been negligent and I don't see that.

On the other hand he could be contractually responsible if his CC&Rs say so.

AKA9501, read your CC&Rs. READ them. Don't rely on what anybody else is telling you is in there. Read them for yourself.

Neither your agent or your insurance company did anything wrong to you.

[mihamih]

I'd think twice before saying he wasn't negligent. He turned the heat down to a point the pipe froze and burst! Yeah he did not turn off completely and the temperature it was turned down to was above freezing but it was going to be negative 20 outside. If negligence is someone knowing that for certain damage will be caused then it would rarely come up in court.

Also what I think a judge would weigh in is that ok so someone buys insurance and they have to pony up 15K because they were not negligent. But if they had been negligent their insurance would cover..... I'm not so sure that judge won't find the HO negligent under the circumstances. He paid for insurance. He should get something out of that insurance. Not get stuck with both bills... Similar analogy applies where WO coverage is involved. This is why many COAs opt to purchase WO coverage even though they don't have employees.

[adjusterjack]

Sorry, no offense, but you appear to know little or nothing about negligence law or insurance and I spent 35 years at it.

I don't have the time or the inclination to give you a proper education but you can probably google the topics and learn a few things.

Judges (and juries) don't find people negligent just to activate liability insurance. In fact, any mention of insurance is inadmissible in court and could likely result in a mistrial.

[aka95001]

i wanted to clarify my original statement .
"the tenant left the unit and she left the heat at 45-55 per my verbal communication, she was gone for two days.. the temperature has been really low in the past few days.. "
what i meant to state was
"the tenant told me she left the unit and the heat was set 45-55, the communication was after the damage, she was gone for two days.. the temperature has been really low in the past few days.. " this was to understand why the unit had damage.. i wouldn't tell her to set the heat at that temperature when my house is always set at 62 when we leave
sorry for the confusion.. i am not trying to blame anyone just looking for options. Hope to expect professional responses.. if my case requires additional details let me know.
Regards,
Ajay

[jk]

Simple.

He wasn't negligent.

For his liability coverage to pay he'd have to have been negligent and I don't see that.

On the other hand he could be contractually responsible if his CC&Rs say so.

AKA9501, read your CC&Rs. READ them. Don't rely on what anybody else is telling you is in there. Read them for yourself.

Neither your agent or your insurance company did anything wrong to you.

MAYBE. Failing to ensure there is adequate heat to ensure the pipes do not freeze can be considered negligence. It depends on the totality of the circumstances.



but arguing he was not negligent, then he has NO liability at all as this is an act of God and as such, to each their own damages.

barring any contractual issue of course but since OP apparently read nothing he ever signed, I figured it would be a waste of time to ask about any contracts.

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Judges (and juries) don't find people negligent just to activate liability insurance. In fact, any mention of insurance is inadmissible in court and could likely result in a mistrial.

that depends on who is suing whom and what the issue is. Obviously if the client is suing the insurance company, which may be a result stemming from this issue, insurance will most likely be mentioned in court. There are other reasons insurance can and will be brought up in court as well, including when establishing damages.

and depending on what OP intended to purchase regarding insurance, the agent may very well have done something wrong to the OP. Agents don't carry E and O insurance for nothing.

- - - Updated - - -

i wanted to clarify my original statement .
"the tenant left the unit and she left the heat at 45-55 per my verbal communication, she was gone for two days.. the temperature has been really low in the past few days.. "
what i meant to state was
"the tenant told me she left the unit and the heat was set 45-55, the communication was after the damage, she was gone for two days.. the temperature has been really low in the past few days.. " this was to understand why the unit had damage.. i wouldn't tell her to set the heat at that temperature when my house is always set at 62 when we leave
sorry for the confusion.. i am not trying to blame anyone just looking for options. Hope to expect professional responses.. if my case requires additional details let me know.
Regards,
Ajay

so, since you want to reqwrite everything:


were you aware the tenant was intending on being out of the apartment before she left?
are there any directives in your lease concerning the heat in any way or notice of leaving the unit vacant for ANY period of time?

[aka95001]

JK and everyone thanks for continued response..
i was not aware that she was leaving the apartment.
and my lease has following language " Damages and Repairs; The Tenant agrees to pay for all the damages to the premises done by the tenant or the Tenant's guest."

what should be my course of action against:
- association who want to charge me $10k for their deductible and will not cover my damages? this is my biggest concern.. i don't have $10k and not sure what action they will take to claim it..
- my landlord policy insurance company who declined the claim because they claim i don't have coverage for the property damage
- my insurance agent who claims i have coverage, not sure what he was insuring besides liability coverage.. what is definition of liability. is 10k considered liability or property damage from the association..
- tenant - based on the lease is there anything i can do?

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CC&R is that same thing as buylaw from the association?
and what is OP?

[jk]

- association who want to charge me $10k for their deductible and will not cover my damages? this is my biggest concern.. i don't have $10k and not sure what action they will take to claim it..

you are going to have to do some reading in your bylaws, or CC&R's

What are CC&Rs? The covenants, conditions and restrictions (CC&Rs) are the governing documents that dictate how the homeowners association operates and what rules the owners -- and their tenants and guests -- must obey. These legal documents might also be called the bylaws, the master deed, the houses rules or another name. These documents and rules are legally enforceable by the homeowners association, unless a specific provision conflicts with federal, state or local laws.

- my insurance agent who claims i have coverage, not sure what he was insuring besides liability coverage.. what is definition of liability. is 10k considered liability or property damage from the association..

if you have liability coverage and insurance company denies based on your lack of liability, then, unless you have a contractual agreement to pay the $10k for some reason, I do not see a basis either the COA or the other tenant can make a valid claim against you.


liability coverage, simply put, is for damages you would be liable to others for. Anything you own would not be covered by liability and vice versa.

- tenant - based on the lease is there anything i can do?

I suspect nothing. She did not turn the heat OFF. She simply turned it down. Unless she lived in the unit during a cold spell before and had a problem with freezing pipes, it isn't likely you will be able to pin this on her given the fact she did leave the heat on, just not high enough apparently.