What is the name of your state?What is the name of your state? New York
My husband and I recently bought a condo in a new development in NYC. While we were away for a few days last month, we received an e-mail from the managing agent saying that the person in the apartment above ours had drilled a hole in the wall causing a water pipe to burst. Apparently, water had been leaking into our apartment for several hours before the main was turned off. The managing agent had entered our apartment to wipe up the water which was standing on the floor. We immediately made a claim to our insurance company which said that even though we did not cause the leak, they would cover the damages. When we returned home, we were contacted by the insurance company of the upstairs neighbor whose agent told us they accepted liability. We were told by both companies to contact contractors so we did and got estimates totaling about $20k (15k for replacing the floor which is completely damaged, and the rest for damaged ceilings/walls and a flooded heater/AC unit). The upstairs neighbor’s insurance company sent an adjuster and after many attempts to contact them they finally told us they would give us $8k to cover all damages. This does not even cover the material. When I sent them the estimates, they all of a sudden changed their mind saying that the managing company of the building was responsible for hiring contractors for the floor and the insurance company would only pay for the walls and the heater. When I contacted my own insurance company, they said that the managing company is responsible for the repairs to all material which was originally installed in our unit. This would include floors, walls/ceiling, and heater. Our insurance company would only cover painting, sanding, and varnishing. I’ve talked to the managing company several times but they refuse to listen or deal with this problem. They say it’s between us and the neighbor. My insurance company now tells me that unless the building puts in a first party claim to its own insurance company, they can’t do anything. Everyone keeps passing the buck and meanwhile our floors continue to warp. Could someone please advice us which insurance company is responsible (ours, our neighbors, or the building’s) and what we can do to get this sorted out so work can be started in our apartment?
Thank you so much!
My husband and I recently bought a condo in a new development in NYC. While we were away for a few days last month, we received an e-mail from the managing agent saying that the person in the apartment above ours had drilled a hole in the wall causing a water pipe to burst. Apparently, water had been leaking into our apartment for several hours before the main was turned off. The managing agent had entered our apartment to wipe up the water which was standing on the floor. We immediately made a claim to our insurance company which said that even though we did not cause the leak, they would cover the damages. When we returned home, we were contacted by the insurance company of the upstairs neighbor whose agent told us they accepted liability. We were told by both companies to contact contractors so we did and got estimates totaling about $20k (15k for replacing the floor which is completely damaged, and the rest for damaged ceilings/walls and a flooded heater/AC unit). The upstairs neighbor’s insurance company sent an adjuster and after many attempts to contact them they finally told us they would give us $8k to cover all damages. This does not even cover the material. When I sent them the estimates, they all of a sudden changed their mind saying that the managing company of the building was responsible for hiring contractors for the floor and the insurance company would only pay for the walls and the heater. When I contacted my own insurance company, they said that the managing company is responsible for the repairs to all material which was originally installed in our unit. This would include floors, walls/ceiling, and heater. Our insurance company would only cover painting, sanding, and varnishing. I’ve talked to the managing company several times but they refuse to listen or deal with this problem. They say it’s between us and the neighbor. My insurance company now tells me that unless the building puts in a first party claim to its own insurance company, they can’t do anything. Everyone keeps passing the buck and meanwhile our floors continue to warp. Could someone please advice us which insurance company is responsible (ours, our neighbors, or the building’s) and what we can do to get this sorted out so work can be started in our apartment?
Thank you so much!