Water Damage to Flat Below

[Maluchin]

Hi,

It would be great if someone could give me some guidance on the following situation:

I am the landlord of a tenanted flat. There was a slow-leak under the bath in my flat which has caused water staining to the bathroom and kitchen ceilings and part of the bathroom wall in the flat below. The leak must have been dripping for about a year (as the sawdust under the bath was drenched).

The damage to the flat below is not that significant (stain blocking and repainting) but the management company is asking me to pay the 250 insurance excess.

If the water leak was an accident, am I obliged to pay this excess?

The flat is leasehold with a share of freehold. The development is managed by a management company to whom I pay 50 pound each month to cover communal cleaning, repairs etc. I would have expected this accidental damage to be covered by this monthly charge?

I if do not pay this excess, will this be absorbed by the management company, or would the management company look to obtain it from the flat below mine?

If the management company did this, could the flat below mine claim against me directly?

Thanks very much, I appreciate your help.

[jhoney]

Is this not the same situation posted here a few days ago?



..where you stated it was [U]deliberately done by your tenant e.g your responsibility? You seem to be quite comfortable with the possibility that the excess may fall upon the flat below (apart from your concern for yourself).

I apologise if I am grossly mistaken, but if I am not, I think you should pay up and stop seeking validation for what amounts to shirking your financial responsibilites (Just as your tenants did to you).

I'm sorry about what they did to your property and finances, but that is no excuse.