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Its complicated so I just said that for convience.
My friends have lived there for the past 3 years, during those winters they only ordered 100 gallons each winter, and I have a record from the oil company to prove it. Then I officially moved in in September.
So it is true. Not sure why your questioning this?
Because when you go to court, it's about facts.
The fact is that you claim that "The past two winters we have only ordered 100+ gallons of oil and that has suffice" is not true. Your thermostat settings may not be the same as what the last renter setting is.
Based on the original post, I saw that it should be a clear case that the Landlord should reimburse you close to the $900 but as more information come to light, there is a lot more details that isn't helping your case.
Not a bad idea, though the police would probably say it's a civil issue now.
Make no mistake though, the oil in the tank was the OP's property and they need to be reimbursed for it. Also, the landlord's refusal to provide the information of the company doing the removal is showing a clear lack of good faith, which is a requirement under both the Uniform Commercial Code and most state landlord-tenant laws.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Cdunlap
To be honest, we probably only used $125.00 of oil in that 28 day period. This is an estimation, which I realize is not a solid figure, but we are suspicious that it has been so difficult to simply get the name of the company who took the oil away. We feel we are being swindled. If we can't find the information about the company who took the oil away, then we will probably threaten the LL with a Small Claim suit. We don't want to go to small claims and they don't either. We have more then enough evidence to justify how much money we are owed.
If the landlord and/or his agents (the people he hired to remove the tank) did not take care to document how much oil was in the tank prior to removal, then the judge would ultimately have to make a judgement call using whatever reasonable methods he can, and any ambiguity would be construed against the landlord.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Donn2390
Removing an oil tank in a legal manner is a lengthy process, you don't just have it removed in a hurry. I'm saying the LL knew weeks in advance it was going to be removed, and should have kept you in the loop. It was your oil, you should have had the option to have it removed and been able to recover some of the cost.
To remove a tank, leaking or not, you have to have a licensed company do soil tests before removal. The samples are submitted for testing to determine the about of leakage, if any, and that takes weeks. There is a lot of red tape involved which takes time, it didn't happen quickly. Abandoning or removing a tank legally is time consuming because you must follow strict federal regulations or face heavy fines.. If he just had someone with a backhoe rip it out and dispose of it, he will be spending some time in jail and paying a heavy fine.
This part is correct. I studied environmental geology/remediation in undergrad and one does not simply come in, remove a tank and call it good.
On a side note, the OP might be wise to simply split the difference and make a counter offer. If the cost was $900 and the landlord offered $500, counter with a $700 offer. If they would agree to that, I'd take it.
Well our LL has been lazy about the whole situation and arbitrarily choosing to pay whatever they feel like. And now the Broker has been swindling us as well and doesn't have an understandable additude. So rather then just make a counter offer, I want to prove that we are right and they are wrong and that we had our property stolen.
Well our LL has been lazy about the whole situation and arbitrarily choosing to pay whatever they feel like. And now the Broker has been swindling us as well and doesn't have an understandable additude. So rather then just make a counter offer, I want to prove that we are right and they are wrong and that we had our property stolen.
Ok. In your best estimate, what was the monetary value of the oil left in the tank?
How do you know the tank was leaking? If your LL did an illegal removal to avoid paying tens of thousands of dollars in cleanup fees, he really shouldn't be jerking you around over an extra $400. Maybe you should point that out?
How do you know the tank was leaking? If your LL did an illegal removal to avoid paying tens of thousands of dollars in cleanup fees, he really shouldn't be jerking you around over an extra $400. Maybe you should point that out?
So true. Dig your feet in and let him take you to court. The landlord AND the guy that took it out could be in big trouble.
I don't see what amount leaked out has to do with anything. Its not the renters fault the LL had a leaky tank, so shouldn't lose $$$ for that. Hope it works out OP, I'd be pizzed.
Our Landlord lives below us on the 1st floor.
We (the renters on the 2nd floor) use oil to heat the house and had the oil company fill it up our tank with 200+ gallons of oil, costing about $900.
About a month later, we came home to discover that the tank had been taken out and replaced with a gas heating unit (probably because it had a crack in it).
There were 28 days between the time the tank was filled and when the tank was taken away.
Now our landlord said she is only going to pay for $500 of the $900 bill, claiming that we used some of the oil within that 28 days period. There is no way we used $400 of oil in 28 days with our thermostate at 60 Degrees.
She should be paying for most/ all of it right?
The oil company can't calculate how much we potentially used in that time and they just want their money.
We have been working with a mediator at the Attorney Generals Office, but we the renters shouldn't have to deal with this right?
We are tempted to just deduct the amount from the rent and give all the paperwork to our landlord.
Thoughts?
You should be reimbursed in full for the cost of the oil minus what the average daily use for the term of 28 days could be best guesstimated at for a unit the size of yours while set at 60F given the average daily (outside) temp. I'm sure someone could figure that out if they really wanted to.
It's not your responsibility that there was a leaky oil tank.
But how did no one notice there was a leak until you filled up to the tune of $900 and went away for 28 days, especially since it's cost you so much more than your friend in usage? Leaks should be more than obvious in an above ground (in the basement) oil tank.
This is a two family house with an upstairs unit and a downstairs unit?
What did your LL use to heat his unit before your unit was switched out to gas?
Were there two oil tanks? One for his unit and one for yours? That would be more than odd. Not going say that could never happen, but just weird.
You need to look up the reasons you can withhold rent in your state before you go that route.
Best of luck to you!
Last edited by Informed Info; 01-18-2014 at 09:46 PM..
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The landlord AND the guy that took it out could be in big trouble.
