Shared Water Line with Neighbor, Cut Off when He Moved

[engeldestode]

My question involves landlord-tenant law in the State of: South Carolina

Apparently my neighbors water line is also mine. Neither of us had this knowledge till he moved out and cut the water off. We were without water for 2 days till the rental company had it turned back on then billed US for the emergency fee to turn it on for 81 dollars. We had water when we moved in and thought it was a well system, there's actually a well in back.... I know, didn't pay for water for 10 months, why should I complain? First off, its not fair for my neighbor who was paying for my water usage, second, hows the future problems going to be handled... who's gonna keep paying the bill when someone else moves in? Whats gonna happen when whoever pays it moves out and gets it cut off for the other person?

And on top of all that, we recently discovered that the neighbor house garage is wired to my power meter. So, the question is...is there any legal action I need to take since the rental company is refusing to take this setup as an issue they need to fix?

[adjusterjack]

we recently discovered that the neighbor house garage is wired to my power meter.

Is the service panel attached to your house? If so, turn off the breaker that leads to the neighbor's garage and put a lock on the panel until that's resolved.

Meantime, the $81 covers the 10 months you didn't pay for water. I doubt that the LL is going to go through the expense of installing a separate water line and meter so your recourse is to move when your lease expires.

[Harold99]

An installation of your own dedicated water meter is the only permanent solution. If you are a renter, it isn't your problem or a cost to you.

Disconnecting your neighbor's garage from your service panel is the next step.