What is my liability if my condominium was severely flooded because of the neighbor’s sink backing up?
Get Legal Help Today
Compare Quotes From Top Companies and Save
Secured with SHA-256 Encryption
What is my liability if my condominium was severely flooded because of the neighbor’s sink backing up?
Since my tenant was out of town the damage went unnoticed for several weeks. The insurance company has denied my claim because of neglect. is there anything that I can do? The condo is now unlivable yet I still have maintenance fees to pay?
Asked on January 11, 2016 under Insurance Law, Florida
Answers:
SJZ, Member, New York Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 8 years ago | Contributor
You can sue the neighbor whose sink backed up, for having negligently (or carelessly) causing damage to your property. (You would sue for the cost to dry out, clean up, repair, etc.) If you can show that the neighbor was at fault, such as by not proactively dealing with smaller back ups until they became a huge problem, or carelessly leaving the water running without checking in it, you could recover money.
Unless your behavior clearly violated the terms of your insurance policy, you could sue the insurer for breach of contract (for not paying you when, under the terms of your policy, they should have) and see if the court will agree with you that your insurer should pay.
IMPORTANT NOTICE: The Answer(s) provided above are for general information only. The attorney providing the answer was not serving as the attorney for the person submitting the question or in any attorney-client relationship with such person. Laws may vary from state to state, and sometimes change. Tiny variations in the facts, or a fact not set forth in a question, often can change a legal outcome or an attorney's conclusion. Although AttorneyPages.com has verified the attorney was admitted to practice law in at least one jurisdiction, he or she may not be authorized to practice law in the jurisdiction referred to in the question, nor is he or she necessarily experienced in the area of the law involved. Unlike the information in the Answer(s) above, upon which you should NOT rely, for personal advice you can rely upon we suggest you retain an attorney to represent you.