Lowes Water Damage, which way to proceed?

[lord_helmet]

What is the name of your state? Texas


Hello, we purchased a Whirlpool washer from Lowes for our family's new house, which we had not even moved into. Washer was delivered and installed by Lowes, a test cycle was ran. Next day we go check in on the house and the laundry room was flooded, with water leaking through a wall and under the adjacent room flooring. Lowes people came over, checked the connection was installed correctly tried to come up with a range of hypothesis. Later that night I finally noticed the leak was from the bottom of the washer itself. Lowes replaced our washer the next day as a defective product. I had a restoration company come asses the water damage today (its been a week since incident) and they are telling me there is moisture under our floor and in a section of the wall. Floor needs to be removed, dried out and replaced. Waiting for the written estimate right now.

What is the best course of action here?

Is Lowes liable here since it was their product? Any experience in having them pay? I already started talks with the store manager and he said they use a third party for insurance claims but didn't go into any details yet.

Should I file a claim with Whirlpool instead since they are the manufacturer?

My homeowners insurance deductible might be higher than the repair itself, but its not a cheap repair by any means. Is it advisable to go the insurance claim route?

 

[quincy]

You should file a claim with Lowes. Lowes potentially can recover their costs from Whirlpool.

 

[lord_helmet]

Thank you for the prompt response.

If any members have had any experience with Lowes before that would be much appreciated.

Would this be one of those where we have to wait for Lowes insurer to make moves before making repairs? or can we have the contractor who did the inspection get started now and sort the bill out with Lowes? This is a time sensitive issue as the moisture only causes more damage.

This whole process is completely new to use and incredibly frustrating as new homeowners.

 

[quincy]

You can file a claim against Lowes but I suggest you contact your own insurance agent and let your insurer take care of it all for you. You can get the damage repaired and your insurer will go after Lowes.

 

[Zigner]

You can file a claim against Lowes but I suggest you contact your own insurance agent and let your insurer take care of it all for you. You can get the damage repaired and your insurer will go after Lowes.

...and once Lowes pays (assuming they pay), the OP will be reimbursed for the deductible.

 

[quincy]

...and once Lowes pays (assuming they pay), the OP will be reimbursed for the deductible.

That’s how it should work.

 

[lord_helmet]

Thank you both.

 

[lord_helmet]

One more while I have your attention, having owned this house a grand total of one month so far and filing a claim so soon, would you think our rates would go up once it renews next year? An acquaintance was telling me earlier that we wouldn't be liable since it was due to Lowes defective appliance. Not sure if that is accurate. Thoughts on that?

Will be calling the insurance in the morning for sure.

 

[quincy]

One more while I have your attention, having owned this house a grand total of one month so far and filing a claim so soon, would you think our rates would go up once it renews next year? An acquaintance was telling me earlier that we wouldn't be liable since it was due to Lowes defective appliance. Not sure if that is accurate. Thoughts on that?

Will be calling the insurance in the morning for sure.

If the damage was caused by Lowes, it should not affect your insurance rate. Lowes will be covering the costs of the damage.

We have a member of this forum who is a former insurance claims adjuster. Perhaps “adjusterjack” will stop by later to add some words of insurance wisdom.

 

[Just Blue]

@adjusterjack

 

[quincy]

@adjusterjack

I actually was going to edit my post to tag adjusterjack but decided jack would probably stop by an insurance thread anyway.

 

[Just Blue]

I actually was going to edit my post to tag adjusterjack but decided jack would probably stop by an insurance thread anyway.

It doesn't hurt to give him a tag.

 

[lord_helmet]

It turns out the entire restoration will be lower than the deductible. Is it still worth going through the insurance route? I mean would they even pay anything out?

 

[zddoodah]

What is the best course of action here?

Read the product warranty. Read the sale terms and conditions. Wait for the damage estimate.

Is Lowes liable here since it was their product?

"Their product"? Sure, it was a product that the store sold, but the store didn't manufacture the product. The damage apparently resulted from a defective product and not anything that the store did. Of course, it's possible that the store employee or contractor who opined about this is wrong, so it wouldn't have been the worst idea to have someone independent assess the situation, but I assume that's no longer possible.

Should I file a claim with Whirlpool instead since they are the manufacturer?

If you accept the opinion that the damage resulted from the product being defective, that would be the logical thing to do.

My homeowners insurance deductible might be higher than the repair itself, but its not a cheap repair by any means. Is it advisable to go the insurance claim route?

It turns out the entire restoration will be lower than the deductible. Is it still worth going through the insurance route? I mean would they even pay anything out?

If the repairs will cost less than the deductible, then there's no point involving your homeowner's insurance.

Would this be one of those where we have to wait for Lowes insurer to make moves before making repairs? or can we have the contractor who did the inspection get started now and sort the bill out with Lowes? This is a time sensitive issue as the moisture only causes more damage.

You should mitigate the damages by getting the repairs done ASAP.

 

[Zigner]

Read the product warranty. Read the sale terms and conditions. Wait for the damage estimate.



"Their product"? Sure, it was a product that the store sold, but the store didn't manufacture the product. The damage apparently resulted from a defective product and not anything that the store did. Of course, it's possible that the store employee or contractor who opined about this is wrong, so it wouldn't have been the worst idea to have someone independent assess the situation, but I assume that's no longer possible.



If you accept the opinion that the damage resulted from the product being defective, that would be the logical thing to do.



It's impossible to answer this question intelligently without knowing the extent of the damages in relation to your deductible.



You should mitigate the damages by getting the repairs done ASAP.

Assuming that this is 100% due to a defective product from the manufacturer, do you believe that the OP doesn't have recourse against the seller?