Rented garage flood

chris167

Hi everyone, I started to rent a garage from my local council (hull) approx. 6 months ago. Over the last 6 weeks or so I have been buying a kitchen bit by bit and storing it in the garage. Last Wednesday my old kitchen was removed for plastering work to be done. With the plaster now dry my wife has began painting the walls ready for me to fit the kitchen. I have gone out to my garage this morning to find the garage has flooded due to the recent heavy rain and all the boxes have soaked up the water ruining the doors and carcasses. The garage itself has a slope up to it so the water hasn't come in through there. I have noticed there is a brick missing above the door and a breather block on the back wall.

Today I have been passed from pillar to post by my local council trying to get something sorted. After waiting 2 hours in a queue I was told I should have insurance to cover it. I do have buildings and content insurance with the AA but that only covers what is on my land. I tried to explain that the flooding and damage was caused by the condition of the garage and therefore they are at fault. The woman on the phone said I signed a contract when taking out the garage saying I was happy with the condition and any loss is my fault. I am not a surveyor, how am I supposed to know it will leak 6 months later? I feel the council should of carried out checks before renting the garage to myself.

Where do I stand? The fact that water has settled in my garage damaging several hundreds of pounds worth of kitchen is my fault apparently. If I lived in a council house and it leaked they would replace the kitchen so why not in my garage. If I was trying to claim for theft I would understand but its the building supplied by the council that is below satisfactory condition that has caused the damage.

Now I have no kitchen at all and have two young children and a very distressed wife.

Please help, chris

G_M

My instinct is that the council has a duty of care and should be providing a garage that is water-tight. Also, that they should have insurance.

However I am by no means certain.

This is not a residential letting, so the LL/tenant leglislation about repairing obligations wouldnot apply.

Try posting on the insurance board, orsee if anyone else has a view here....

chris167

Thankyou I shall copy my post in the insurance board, I don't want to claim on my insurance all lose my no claims when im not at fault

BitterAndTwisted

Why would a garage, for keeping a motor-vehicle secured safely, need to be water-tight? I would never store furniture or anything else of value that wasn't a vehicle in a garage. If you need to keep things dry and undamaged, don't use a garage for it!

chris167

A garage is not solely used to store a motor vehicle is it. Unless I have missed an unwritten rule during my life time. The fact the building I pay rent for is below standard and there is a brick missing along the roof line tells me that it is below a standard expected and I am not responsible for the structural upkeep of it because it does not belong to me. The fact I cannot get out of my car through the door when it is in the garage suggests it has to be used for other purpose.

Werdnal

Local authority garage stock was built a long time ago, when cars were smaller/narrower than they are now. The fact that you cannot get your car in is not the council's fault.

I suspect B&T is correct, and the council would have a duty to pay out if the flooding was so bad it damaged your car, but anything else stored in the garage is done so at your risk. Garages tend not to be secure anyway, with sheet roofing and vulnerable locks, so I personally would not use them for storing anything of value other than a vehicle which can be locked securely anyway.

chris167

I see what your saying but why would they pay for a damaged car and not anything else? whats the difference, the agreement I signed did not state only a car can be stored in there. Surely storing one of my cars in there would be done at my own risk too?

ognum

I have a garage away from my home that I use as storage but I always store anything of value on blocks for this very reason.

I think it is your duty to insure your things but what does your tenancy agreement say.

chris167

I was not provided with a copy of my tenancy agreement. Today I requested one to be sent in the post. When I got the garage I was given a key and the woman said if she didn't hear anything from me within two weeks, I was happy with it and payments would be setup from then. My issue is with the condition of the garage, I feel that if the garage was in a better condition it wouldn't of happened. The garage has a slope up to it to stop water getting under the doors. The amount of what that I have swept out today did not travel uphill.

Werdnal

chris167 wrote: »

I see what your saying but why would they pay for a damaged car and not anything else? whats the difference, the agreement I signed did not state only a car can be stored in there. Surely storing one of my cars in there would be done at my own risk too?

Because a garage is predominantly built and designed for storing a vehicle. I doubt they would even cover tools or any other items that people would probably store in it.

The point is, if a garage, purpose built for storing a vehicle caused that vehicle to became damaged as the structure was not fit for purpose, ie allowed flooding to damage the vehicle, you may have a valid claim. However, the intended purpose of the garage is not to store anything other than a vehicle. If you choose to use it for something other than that purpose, you do so at your own risk. The chance of the flooding being deep enough to actually enter the vehicle and cause damage is far less (ie a better risk for the council to cover) than vulnerable boxes of kitchen units stored on the floor.

chris167

I see what your saying, but at no point was I told that it is solely leased to me for storage of a vehicle. It may sound petty but I feel that it doesn't matter what is in there, the fact the brick building supplied has bricks missing allowing water in is the problem. I don't expect it to be water tight, but come on, bricks missing is something else, if the water had been able to get in under the doors then fair enough but it is not possible