Is the landlord liable for damages if the basketball hoop at my rental fell onto my car and damaged it?
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Is the landlord liable for damages if the basketball hoop at my rental fell onto my car and damaged it?
I rent a house and the landlord left a portable basketball hoop there when we moved in. Then 2 weeks ago, due to high winds, the hoop fell on my parked car and caused $530 in damages. Our auto policy covers it but we have a $500 deductible. I asked the landlord if I could write it off against the rent and he told me that he will not be paying for any damages. This is not my basketball hoop. Shouldn’t he be liable and pay for the deductible?
Asked on March 8, 2012 under Real Estate Law, Massachusetts
Answers:
SJZ, Member, New York Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 12 years ago | Contributor
A landlord is not your insurer--he is not liable for all injuries or property damage occuring on his property. He is only liable to the degree that he is at fault in causing the damage. Typically, that means that he is only liable if he was negligent, or unreasonably careless, in some way. From what you write, that is probably not the case here: many, many people have portable hoops; there is nothing inherently careless about having them. You write that it fell over during high winds; the landlord is not liable for wind conditions.
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