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The joys of being a landlord. So I get a call just a short bit ago and didn't know if I have any hope in recouping my money.
My tenant calls me (from Greenville) stating that the neighbor's car (which I find out is uninsured) rolled down the hill through our metal fence and into the HVAC system, which caused a gas leak.
So with the car being uninsured, can anyone tell me what my best route to go in for this situation? Can I even sue this woman for damages?
Document everything with pictures, take statements from any relevant witnesses, and get a police report.
Then, once you have a copy of the repair estimate (or bill if you don't have time to wait for estimates because the tenants need a functioning hvac asap), ask for the money from the vehicle owner. Any stand up person would reimburse you for the damage they caused ... but if they refuse then simply take them to small claims court. The fact that don't have car insurance is really the vehicle owner's problem, it simply means that they'll have to pay out of pocket. It's not going to be the same situation as an uninsured motorist hurting someone else and medical costs being so expensive that the victim has no hope of ever extracting such a significant sum from the guilty party. In this case the amounts involved will be small enough for recovery.
Just make sure you replace the items like for like (to the degree that it's possible) ... you don't want to show up in small claims court and have the judge think you're trying to take advantage of the situation to upgrade your hardware.
I'm really ignorant when it comes to these type of things and any form of real estate (that's my husband's thing) but like the fence is ruined and I have no idea what that costs to repair. Is it even worth going to small claims over that? I say that because even though our HVAC system was working, it probably had a year or two left on it.
We did get a police report and the tenant was home at the time of the accident so he's a witness. I'm having someone take pictures later since it was too dark when it happened.
If I file with small claims, would she have to drive to Charleston? Sorry, I'm no law person either ha. But I don't know if that would be smart since I want my witness easy access to court that day.
If you want an easier way out, just file a claim with your own homeowners insurance. Hopefully they will fix the damages like any other insurance claim and you don't have to worry over it again.
At that point your insurance company will have the option of litigation against the neighbor if they choose, but you will not have to worry about that as you will not be involved (unless you are given a subpoena to appear or to give a written affidavit).
Given the fact that you seem out-of-sorts over this already, I would suggest you file the claim and let the insurance company take over...it's why you pay for the insurance in the first place.
I'm really ignorant when it comes to these type of things and any form of real estate (that's my husband's thing) but like the fence is ruined and I have no idea what that costs to repair. Is it even worth going to small claims over that? I say that because even though our HVAC system was working, it probably had a year or two left on it.
We did get a police report and the tenant was home at the time of the accident so he's a witness. I'm having someone take pictures later since it was too dark when it happened.
If I file with small claims, would she have to drive to Charleston? Sorry, I'm no law person either ha. But I don't know if that would be smart since I want my witness easy access to court that day.
If you filed in small claims, it would have to be in Greenville. This is where the property was damaged and the location of the home you rent out.
And remember -- if they have nothing you will get nothing --you can get water from a stone.
I would think the best way is to make a claim on your insurance and they will pursue litigation. Trust me......if your insurance company thinks someone else is at auult they will pursue it.
Hang on now. Before you go through the hassle of a lawsuit, you haven't said whether or not you have spoken with the neighbor about them simply paying for the damages. Not saying that is going to happen, but too many people in this world are way, way too fast on the lawsuit thing, and most of the time things can be worked out with a simple negotiation between the parties (e.g. you get a repair estimate for the gas/hvac/whatever and the neighbor pays for the work).
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