Help! My neighbor flooded my ceiling, but I don’t have insurance!?
May 31, 2010 by
Filed under condo insurance quote
I live in a condo complex. My neighbor flooded our ceiling when she said her dishwasher wouldn’t stop filling water (not sure about it). Then I asked her Insurance, they wouldn’t cover because she said it wasn’t her fault. Later on she asked if my insurance would cover, unfortunately, I wasn’t able to get one, because when I did, I thought I made a coverage, what I did was just a quote. So I asked my condo complex’s builder, he said, she should be liable, since she has been there for two years, and she should be responsible in maintaining her appliances. Right now, we are thinking of having a meeting with the neighbor, so that we can discuss on what to do. So what do you think I should do next!?
And yeah, I don’t think we don’t have a master condo insurance yet since we don’t have an association yet, I think it’s still under the builder. I’m not looking to sue anybody for anything else, except for a ceiling and a light fixture.
Most lawyers offer a one-time free consultation.
I suggest you find one and get some professional advice.
And you need to get some insurance asap. I realize it won’t cover this incident, but it will be helpful in the future.
Get insurance fast!
Your neighbor upstairs is responsible for the damage, not you.
Have a meeting with a third party present. You can get legal advice from a lawyer, first visits are free.
Good luck
Your neighbor is at fault. The origin of the water was in her condo and not in or from a common area. If your neighbor has insurance keep calling them and tell them that if they do not honor this you will take them to the state insurance commission (most states have a insurance controlling entity) Research and get all the information. Policy number, date, Photos,etc. Second step would be to get your lawyer and the condo board involve as the damage between the floors could cause problems to other units and they also may need to contact the insurance company.
Yep, you are uninsured.
Your builder is not a lawyer, clearly, or an insurance geek. She is not liable. She was not negligent. This was an accident. Accidents happen – and this was an accidental discharge of water.
No one is going to pay for this, except you. Not the association, not her, not her insurance. If you try to sue her, you’re going to lose. Just like, if YOUR dishwasher floods the unit under you, YOU don’t have to pay to fix THEIR unit.
Now go buy insurance tomorrow, so that if her toilet overflows next, you don’t have ANOTHER uninsured claim.
Some of the answers here are so wrong and so frustrating.
First, you live in a condo complex – all complexes are different. You need to get a copy of the bylaws and see who covers what. Many condo associations have what they call a “master” policy which may cover repairs up to what is considered the “original install”. So if you had primer white walls, you get primer white walls. However all of these rules are different depending on the bylaws, you have to read the bylaws carefully.
Your next options would be to file a claim against the dishwasher manufacturer under a liability claim. If that doesn’t work, you can try to file a liability claim with your neighbor if they have insurance.
In order to be liable…she has to be negligent. That means – she has to have done something or not done something that caused the damage.
What yearly maintenance is required of a dishwasher?
I have never heard of anyone ever having a dishwasher serviced regularly. That’s ridiculous.
Geee…did it every occur to you that maybe the builder or his subcontractor screwed up the install of the dishwasher. In which case, he’s going to be real quick to put the blame somewhere else. Take what he says with a grain of salt. Because if it’s a bad install…..yep….he or his sub is on the hook. (provided you can prove it).
If the dishwasher malfunctioned – that’s not your neighbors fault.
Now….if she ran the dishwasher but when she closed it – did not close the door all the way – so water leaked out when it ran – now she’s negligent. She did not close the door all the way when she ran the machine.
See the difference?
Now…..if you want to prove a dishwasher malfunction or a bad install…..you are going to need your neighbors help and cooperation. Did she save the damaged/malfunctioned part? Does she have a statement from the repair person saying what is wrong with the unit?
If her company pays for the damage and believes they can go back against the builder or manufacturer – your neighbor may be able to call her company and find out who to contact at the builder/manufacture and give that info to you. (Her insurance company is not going to release that info to you).
Tick your neighbor off…..and you probably won’t get the help you need from her.
In the end….you should have made sure you had an insurance policy. And if you never paid an insurance premium you did not. Condo insurance works the same way as car insurance and health insurance. You pay for the service before the policy period is rendered.
And if you get the bright idea to hire an attorney and sue her…..you will have to pay your attorney bill. Her insurance will pay for an attorney to defend her.
What should you do?
Fix your ceiling yourself.
Unless you can prove that she was negligent and her negligence caused damage to your unit – she’s not responsible for your damage. Just owning the dishwasher or having it in her unit does not make it automatically her fault.
You need to call her insurance company again. Have they sent you a denial letter? If not, keep calling them, because they are liable.
Tell them to send you a denial letter. I bet they won’t.
I LOVE HOW ALL THE SO CALLED INSURANCE EXPERTS ARE USUALLY7 WRONG. If her dishwasher caused a flood in your condo she is liabale for the damge that it has created but you should check with the master policy of the condo association first. and the bylaws but if not take to small claims court she should have prevented the dishwasher from leaking.