damage from pipe leak upstairs

[ninja9r94]

What is the name of your state?
The property I am questioning about is a condo. in Florida. Recently the unit above mine had a water supply line leak. My tenant notified the occupants upstairs immediately. To make a long story short, between myself and my tenant we pleaded with the occupants of the unit (its a rental also, to the owners daughter) and to the owner for 12 days to get a plumber in to fix the problem before the leak was fixed. Obviously now I have some damages from the water and since I do not have homeowners insurance, I would like to know what legal standing I have. The unit owner is telling me that her Insurance company doesn't cover my unit, but it's my belief that it's her complete negligance that cause the extent of the damages in the first place. If I have left out some necessary details, please let me know. Thanks.

 

[Dave]

Ninja,
Don't expect a straight answer. I just posted the same question a few days ago.

https://forum.freeadvice.com/showthread.php?p=1244903#post1244903

 

[justalayman]

Ninja,
Don't expect a straight answer. I just posted the same question a few days ago.

https://forum.freeadvice.com/showthread.php?p=1244903#post1244903

Dave, you knwo that is not true. The very first person to respond to your post gave you the answer you needed.


To this OP: since you do not have home owners insurance, you get the same answer: sue the owner of the unit above you in small claims court. Hopefully you did what you could (mitigate damages) to prevent as much damage as you could control.

 

[ninja9r94]

This is what I was thinking my option would be. As of now the other owner is saying that they are willing to pay, but I wanted to know of my possible future options. I believe that the constant calls to the owner and continuous soaking up water with towels, would constitute trying to limit damages. Our biggest concern now is mold. I cannot believe that someone would just let a leak continue for such a long time, it was very difficult knowing of the problem and not being able to take care of it, since without entry to her unit there was nothing I could do... quite stressfull. Do you think that there are further damages I could receive other than the material costs?

Thanks for your response

 

[ninja9r94]

I was wondering what the limit of a claim is in small claims court in Florida? Oh, is there a way to file a claim and not be in the state? I live in NY.

 

[JWL]

Yes you can get the forms for small claims court on line and file by mail. If the leak was coming from the upstairs unit owner's plumbing fixtures or dedicated plumbing lines, their leak caused your damages and they owe you for the repairs. Now if the leak came from a line that is common to a number of units - a main water line leak for example, it is the Associations' responsibility.

Speak to the owner of the condo first. Notify them in writing. Document your damages with photographs. File a small claim if they don't take care of it. I wouldn't attempt to sue for pain & suffering. Stick to tangibles.