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I'd appreciate some advice on a potentially costly situation I've wound up in, particularly regarding who is at fault. My landlord is a very close friend, so it's not like I'm looking for ammo against him.
I live in the basement, along with two other tenants. The washing machine has been broken for some time now - on the dial, there's a sticky note that says not to turn the dial to one of several positions, and instead, turn the dial between their normal stopping points. I never knew why the adjustment was necessary, but I followed the directions nevertheless. Today, I accidentally left the dial where it shouldn't go and the washer flooded the entire basement. Luckily, I was in my room and saw the water flowing in, so I went out and stopped the washer before it got even worse. I noticed a drain cover over the floor and pulled it off, which emptied out all of the water very quickly.
Quite a few boxes and other odds and ends were damaged, but no big deal there. What I'm worried about is the floor and the drywall - my landlord installed Pergo over the existing carpet, so we have no way to access the carpet until he returns later this week. I'm pretty sure that all of the carpet is waterlogged because my housemate in the next room encountered dampness in some exposed carpet in her closet, yet the water that flowed to her doorway never made it that far. So the water had to have traveled through the carpet and the wall into her room.
Yes, I should have obeyed the sticky note. But I'm not sure why A) the washer wasn't fixed or replaced, B) the drain was covered in such a way that prevented it from being usable and C) why he installed Pergo over carpet, which (and I'm certainly no carpenter) seems like a really lazy thing to do. He does not have a deposit from me, but that shouldn't matter anyway because I would certainly pay him if this is my fault. Again, he's a good friend.
I don't have renters insurance, but it wouldn't have helped anyway. Renters insurance covers the possessions of the renter (among other things), not the structure itself. Property damage belonging to the landlord is paid for with their home insurance.
Renters insurance can cover any damage the tenant caused or defend a tenant against a claim if the company feels its unjust. They do cost a lot more and thats usually enough to keep most tenants from looking beyond the basic coverage. So withut insurance to fight for yoiu, you need to apply the same rationel they would.
1. You owe nothing nada, zip, take me to court for a penny. But if this is your friend, and since you have accepted a degree of responsibility, this prbbaly isn't the tact you want to take.
2. The items in boxes damaged by the water most likey is going to be your fault so long as they were not stored on the floor between the washer and the floor drain.
3. The covered floor drain is not an issue as you could have removed the covere before washing and restored it after washing. Sometimes the basement drains have covers to prevent sewer gasses from escaping into the building. Althoioght the cover contributed to the severity, it may not be the right battle to fight.
4. It is also a non issue about water migration into other areas as even a basement without covered drains or pergo covered carpets could seep water from flooding into other areas.
5. Pergo covered carpet???? You are responsible for water damage to the pergo that would normally occur from flooding but not the carpet or anything related to water damage from that carpet as Pergo manyfcaturing Essential Installation Guide states carpet is to be removed. That means the Pergo was not installed per manufacturing or industry standards and the carpet was a main contributing factor in the excessive damage to the pergo..
Truth is, this is a negotiation since your paying out of your pocket. Try to work something out that you both agree is reasonable. If you are both unhapopy with the agreement, odds are its fair.
Well, it sounds like you want to remain friends with your LL, so I'm going to advise you based on that.
Tell your LL what happened, and that your LL needs to call his insurance agent.
It should be that simple.
If you don't want to fight about it, then pay for any damage to any boxes. And you can all just not mention anything about an illegal apartment.
If your "friend/landlord" turns out to be a jerk about this, then you can fight him about it.
I think it was extremely negligent of the LL to put a washing machine out for tenants to use, knowing if any of the tenants made a simple mistake, that it could mean a flood, and expensive damage.
If he turned into a jerk to me, that's the tack I'd take. Look, you were negligent by knowingly allowing your tenants to use a washing machine that was poised to flood your house. And BTW, your insurance company might like to know that, and also that the apartment is illegal, etc., etc. There are ways to fight it, if it gets nasty.
But, to keep the peace, start out by getting him to call his insurance to cover things. Just kindly keep insisting that that's what insurance is for, that it was an accident. I'd actually start out by saying his insurance should cover the wet boxes, too. Might as well let the insurance pay for everything, including the boxes, if it's covered.
Thanks guys. I've been talking on the phone with him and I think we've both accepted responsibility. I pried up most of the pergo (actually it's probably a cheaper laminate) because the carpet was wet in most places. In my neighbor's room, it actually stank of mold when we pulled up the laminate! I'm not expert, but I doubt mold could grow in 12 hours time, which tells me that mold has been growing beneath the laminate for the past year, since the last time we had a flood! Do any of you have any advice on this? Also, what constitutes an illegal apartment?
It depends on local codes what constitutes an illegal apt. Some place require a C O (certificate of occupancy) but some don't. Most of the area around here, has no codes.
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