Need help on fence fire

idoesthis

My neighbours fence and piping burnt down after a fire and the firemen originally said it was a fire on their behalf. Now what's happened was that I have a letter through my house from solicitors/insurance saying I must give up £20,000 for the repairs to his premises. He's claimed new flooring in his lounge, new windows and silly things. Now what he did before was that he trespassed in my garden and took some cigarettes and showed me saying I flicked them over so they must be my fault? I have a plant pot on the other side of my garden about 20 feet away from that fence where I put my fags. Now I need some legal advice or what can I do because this is not my fault and I don't have £20,000 to pay. Also no one from my family was at home at the time of the fire and we all have legit alibis.
Thanks anyone
much appreciated.

gordikin

Reply asking for evidence that shows you are responsible for the fire?

huckster

idoesthis wrote: »

My neighbours fence and piping burnt down after a fire and the firemen originally said it was a fire on their behalf. Now what's happened was that I have a letter through my house from solicitors/insurance saying I must give up £20,000 for the repairs to his premises. He's claimed new flooring in his lounge, new windows and silly things. Now what he did before was that he trespassed in my garden and took some cigarettes and showed me saying I flicked them over so they must be my fault? I have a plant pot on the other side of my garden about 20 feet away from that fence where I put my fags. Now I need some legal advice or what can I do because this is not my fault and I don't have £20,000 to pay. Also no one from my family was at home at the time of the fire and we all have legit alibis.
Thanks anyone
much appreciated.

Never heard so much rubbish.

Just send a letter to the solicitors saying that you have passed their letter onto your Contents Insurers. Provide them with the name of your Insurers, their address and your policy number. Do not make any comment. Send the solicitors letter onto your Contents Insurers with a covering letter, just stating the facts as you see them and that you are not liable. Under Contents Insurance you have personal liability cover, so your Insurers will deal with it as appropriate.

If you don't have Contents Insurance, just send a letter back to the solicitors denying their allegation, advising that you are quite happy for them to take this to court, where you will defend any claim with vigour. If they write back further, book to see a solicitor. http://www.communitylegaladvice.org.uk/

idoesthis

Thanks both of you for your replies and your help, I'm going to thank your posts after I type this up. You don't know how much of help I'm in need of..
The thing is I don't want my insurance company to pay him because I believe he has a fraudulent case... The letter talks about causation, negligence and the duty of care on my behalf because of a lit fag but no one smokes in the morning. and if it was a fag in the night then surely there would have been a fire in the early hours of the morning right? Now it says that I broke the duty of care by not extinguishing a fag? Like I said he also did show me fags which I know he picked up from my garden and my fags are all put out in a sand pot in my garden so there's no reason for me to flick it over? so that surely ends negligence, causation and the duty of care on my behalf right?
Thanks again everyone.

idoesthis

please someone reply

huckster

This might appear a blunt reply, which it is.

Follow the previous advice. Do NOT get involved. If you just send on the solicitors letter to your Contents Insurers claims department, with a covering letter with your side of the story, I am sure your Insurers will tell them to get lost in a nice way.

In the meantime, just reply to the solicitors saying that you have passed their letter onto your Home/liability Insurers, who will be in contact in due course.

Do NOT speak to your neighbour, even if they try to speak to you. Ignore them.

I am not going to post again on this. Just follow the advice, as otherwise there is no point. The best way to stop your neighbour is to get your Insurers to deal with it. I am 99.9% certain that they will not be paying out, unless a court tells them they have to.

If you ignore the advice and you are taken to court, there is the possibility your Insurers will not indemnify you and you will face having to pay the neighbours Insurers yourself.