[chiuey]

Not really a Vegas question but here goes anyway.

So i have a pipe (I believe the garbage disposal pipe) coming from my condo (2nd floor) that has a leak behind the wall (lower floor) for a while which caused a hole in his ceiling and mold in the walls. There was no way to see the pipe. However, he never did anything about it until his place was flooded from a broken water heater which was a whole separate problem. He leaves his house for months at a time. The water damage control guys came in and spotted that hole and informed him of the leak. That's when they called me. I paid for the pipe to be fixed and to clear out the mold. Now he wants me to also fix for the surrounding damage. My home insurance will not pay for this because they say I am not negligible since I fixed the pipe right away and am not responsible for any other damages. He does NOT have home insurance. So, the owner downstairs says I should pay for it since it was my pipe that was leaking. Who pays for the surrounding damages downstairs? thanks

[lvoc]

Unfortunately you need a lawyer. This is a weird portion of the laws that deal with condos and particualry pipes which are owned by the common but used by particular sets of owners. Basically it is the problem of the particular owners...even though the condo association has a requirement they fix it....it is really not allowed for an owner to fix problems which lie in the common space.

Your Insurance company can take whatever position they wish as long as they defend you from any suit. They are not going to be enthusiastic about doing that. So you are likely to end up having to defend yourself and go after your insurance company to pay for it.

Note the issue is wild when you get down to him not noticing for a long time that you were damaging his property. He may well be liable for failure to inform you of the damage when he should have known of it. And all that gets litigated.

You need a lawyer.

[chiuey]

There is a universal negligence law Ive read that states that I would only pay the damages if I neglected the broken pipe. However, I fixed it right away when I heard about it, therefore I would not be negligent to pay for the surrounding damages. Have you heard anything about this law?

[ddrhazy]

If it's considered a Limited Common Element(LCE) then it may not be your responsibility and the claim would be filed under the master plan's insurance policy.

[BBMW]

I would report this to your homeowner's policy carrier. They'll work it out between themselves, the building's carrier, and the carrier of the policy held by the guy downstairs.

[Tek_Freek]

Originally Posted by chiuey

Not really a Vegas question but here goes anyway.

So i have a pipe (I believe the garbage disposal pipe) coming from my condo (2nd floor) that has a leak behind the wall (lower floor) for a while which caused a hole in his ceiling and mold in the walls. There was no way to see the pipe. However, he never did anything about it until his place was flooded from a broken water heater which was a whole separate problem. He leaves his house for months at a time. The water damage control guys came in and spotted that hole and informed him of the leak. That's when they called me. I paid for the pipe to be fixed and to clear out the mold. Now he wants me to also fix for the surrounding damage. My home insurance will not pay for this because they say I am not negligible since I fixed the pipe right away and am not responsible for any other damages. He does NOT have home insurance. So, the owner downstairs says I should pay for it since it was my pipe that was leaking. Who pays for the surrounding damages downstairs? thanks

Originally Posted by BBMW

I would report this to your homeowner's policy carrier. They'll work it out between themselves, the building's carrier, and the carrier of the policy held by the guy downstairs.

Negotiations may be more interesting.

[BBMW]

^
Okay, I didn't notice that. But it makes it simpler. Don't pay. If anyone tries to sue him (the downstairs owner, the building), then get the insurance company involved. It would still be covered under his liability coverage. The insurance company would decide how to handle the case.

[chiuey]

Yes he does not have insurance and that is the big problem; that's why he wants me to pay but I don't feel like Im obligated to since I already fixed the pipe and mold. My insurance company said they would back me. I've asked for the cc&r from the HOA to see if there is anything that says I am responsible but no response yet. They did mention in some emails that I am responsible for my pipes and any surrounding damages. However, the pipe is on his side. So what if my pipe traveled 3 condos away and broke there...would I still be responsible for that?! He's been calling me and I'm not sure if I should call him back and defend my case, or just tell him I'm still looking into things. Anyway, I'll keep u guys updated. Thanks for the input so far.

[Macklessdaddy]

I flooded my neighbors place awhile back from a r.o system, I was in no way responsible for his house, that's why people have insurance, now if you want to pay his deductible to be nice then that's another thing but you don't owe him jack

Didn't see that he doesn't have ins.Oh well he's screwed

[BBMW]

Either it's your liability or not. Whether or not he has insurance is not relevant to that. If the leak was caused by a pipe that burst inside the walls, likely this is the responsibility of the HOA/condo corporation.

Originally Posted by chiuey

Yes he does not have insurance and that is the big problem; that's why he wants me to pay but I don't feel like Im obligated to since I already fixed the pipe and mold. My insurance company said they would back me. I've asked for the cc&r from the HOA to see if there is anything that says I am responsible but no response yet. They did mention in some emails that I am responsible for my pipes and any surrounding damages. However, the pipe is on his side. So what if my pipe traveled 3 condos away and broke there...would I still be responsible for that?! He's been calling me and I'm not sure if I should call him back and defend my case, or just tell him I'm still looking into things. Anyway, I'll keep u guys updated. Thanks for the input so far.