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rental fire

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LesleySmith

Junior Member
Indiana
2 weeks ago today, a fire broke out in my rental. The rental is a large house, divided into 3rds, the landlors live in one part, another tenant is in the other, and im in the last part. The fire started on a friday, I had not been there since the sunday before, I locked the door when I left, and no one else but myself and the landlords have a key. The fire was very suspicious, the firemen doing the investigation actually told me they believed the landlord came downstairs, set the fire, and went back upstairs to wait. Inititally the fire dept ruled the fire as non-accidental, and an insurance investigator for the landlord's insurance company contacted me for questions about if I smoked, left the door unlocked, etc. The fire started in the corner of 2 blank walls, with no electrical outlets, in the room of the water heater and gas furnace. The fire burned so hot that it melted the plastic pipes on the water heater and put the fire on the carpeting out before it burned over to the water heater or furnace. I had turned the furnace off before I left, and the firedept inspected the furnace and water heater and said neither were even damaged from the fire. The landlords also put the house up for sale a few weeks before without notifying me about it, and on the day of the fire, the for sale by owner signs that had been up in the front yard were removed. Also, the same week that they put the hosue up for sale themselves, one of the landlords had been in a replaced a gas pipe and didn't say anything to me about it until the day of the fire, saying he forgot to mention it to me. They didn't offer me any alternative housing, and I had paid the rent for october on Sept 27th, and the fire occured Oct. 13th. I sent them a certified letter that they signed for on the 20th listing my property damages and expenses and also stating I wanted the rent from oct 13-Oct 31 and the deposit returned since the damages to the dwelling were no fault of mine, and since the dwelling was no longer inhabitable. I do not have renters insurance, and I am waiting to hear back from the fire investigator for their insurance company. I also stated in the letter that I wanted to hear back from them in the 72 hours after they recieved they letter, I know they have my phone number, it is on the lease, but on the day of the fire, they claimed they did not have my number, and the police in indiana had to call my work to look for me. I want my things replaced, I lost 90% of my furnishings, more than half of my clothes from smoke and fire damage, my iBook laptop, and almost all of my personal items. I already checked into if I had renters insurance, and under the suspicious circumstances of the fire, more than likely they would have not paid me anything. Please help me, I want to take them to court for damages, the pro-rated rent, and my deposit returned, I just am at a loss of what to do.
 



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