Suing a tenant

[raggedyman]

All,

Would like some advice here. Have a tenant who has vacated a property still under lease - agent said they were not advised the tenant had vacated. They were out for 32 days (but had been going back to check for mail) and a pipe burst which caused £50k worth of damage. Tenant reckons he tried to turn off the water at the stopcock, but didn't turn it far enough...

If the insurance doesn't pay out, can I get the £50k out of the tenant by suing for negligence?

Any/all advice gratefully received...

[Paul_f]

Err....................how rich is yout tenant? Realisitically the answer is..................not a cat in hell's chance.

[raggedyman]

Why do you say not a cat in hell's chance? If the tenant has assets to liquidate, then surely this is a viable option to recover even a portion of the loss? What prevents me from pursuing them?

[P.Pilcher]

You can be certain that the lawyers involved will do allright - whether this will be at your expense or not is something only you can decide!

P.P.

[Wickerman]

All,

Would like some advice here. Have a tenant who has vacated a property still under lease - agent said they were not advised the tenant had vacated. They were out for 32 days (but had been going back to check for mail) and a pipe burst which caused £50k worth of damage. Tenant reckons he tried to turn off the water at the stopcock, but didn't turn it far enough...

If the insurance doesn't pay out, can I get the £50k out of the tenant by suing for negligence?

Any/all advice gratefully received...

I would vigorously pursue the Insurance Company for this. If they payout and if they determine the t is to blame, they will pursue the tenant.