Damaged items - our responsibility or landlord?

richbek

Hi all, I'm after some advice. This may be a long post so please bear with me.


We're in a rented house. There is a large brick built garage in the garden which we have no access to and the landlord uses for storage.
In Feb 2015 the garage fell down. The landlord took months to get it cleared and rebuilt and we couldn't use the garden for over six months (the entire summer). We then had to spend a week ourselves going over the lawn picking up glass, nails, brick pieces etc before we could let the kids back out.
We emailed the agents a few times during that period and after it was complete, asking about compensation for not having access to the garden, and also the replacement value of our personal property that was damaged when the garage fell on it (benches, kids' toys and our shed - about £300 worth of stuff). The agents eventually replied saying that the landlord had agreed not to increase our rent for a year as compensation for the garden, and they would get back to us about the personal property.
We have chased it a couple of times with no luck.
We have just handed in out notice, and on the notice letter I added that we still haven't had a response, and if I don't hear back within 28 days with a yes or no answer, I will be taking legal advice.
The agent replied yesterday, asking whether we had made a claim on our contents insurance. I replied that we hadn't, and have just received this reply:


"What happened to the garage was an unfortunate accident that no one expected. Your landlord will not pay for any items that were possibly damaged due to this. The landlord has buildings insurance to cover things that happen to the building itself. We advise that tenants have contents insurance for damage that can occur to their personal belongings. If you had contacted your insurance company at the time, you may have been able to make a counter claim against the landlord for some of the costs to replace the items. I am sorry, but there is nothing I can do at this stage."



I have some photos of the damage but I can't work out how to add them to this post.

Where do we stand legally? Any advice welcome. Thank you!

TBagpuss

Unles the landlord was negligent, they are not liable to you for the damage caused by the garage falling down.

You would need to make a claim on your own insurnace and your insureers could, if they felt it was appropriate, try to recover the loss from your landlord or their insurer.

If the landlord was negligent (i.e. if they knew or should reasonably have known that the garage was liable to collapse, and they failed to take reasonable steps to prevent it) then you *might* be able to make a claim against them but whether it would be cost effective to do so is another question. And the landlord may be able to argue that you should have mitigated your loss by claiming on your own insurance, so that they should not be liable for anything more than your excess.

Pixie5740

I don't think that legally your LL is responsible for paying for items caused by the collapsing garage, that's what your contents insurance is for.

richbek

Thank you.


As far as I am aware, his buildings insurance didn't pay out due to 'bad build'. I also don't believe that the new structure in the garden has been signed off by a buildings inspector. Does this make a difference at all?

Pixie5740

You don't know what has happened or is happening with his buildings insurance. Do you need to have a garage signed off by a building inspector? I think you're clutching at straws and should have claimed on your own insurance but depending on the excess it might not be worth it for £300 of belongings.

theartfullodger

There is nothing to stop you suing landlord, now or after end of tenancy (after trying to sort things out, exchange of letters...) for the money due to his negligence in maintaining the property. Small claims procedure.

If I'm hit on the head by a brick falling off a negligently maintained building as a promenade down Pall Mall on the way to my club - assuming I survive - I surely have a claim against the building owners.

That he does or does not have any insurance of any category is irrelevant to his liability.

richbek

Pixie5740 wrote: »

You don't know what has happened or is happening with his buildings insurance. Do you need to have a garage signed off by a building inspector? I think you're clutching at straws and should have claimed on your own insurance but depending on the excess it might not be worth it for £300 of belongings.

He lives next door to us and came over a few days after it happened asking us to tell the insurance inspector that it was storm damage. We said we didn't know what had caused it and would tell the inspector the same, if they asked. As it was, we weren't in when they came round.


He stopped my husband in the street a week or so later complaining that the insurance wouldn't pay out and it as because they had decided it was a bad build.


I'm not clutching at straws, just trying to work out legally where we stand as I for the past 16 months have been led to believe by the agents that they were discussing with the landlord about him compensating us for the damage. They haven't at any point mentioned our own insurance and I naively thought that it was being sorted.

richbek

Thank you for your replies.


I'm guessing that there's probably no point in me trying to put in a claim now as my future premiums will increase so with that and the excess I doubt it's worth my while. That's if they would even cover it given the time that has elapsed.


I'm so glad we're moving out, this man has been nothing but trouble for six years

eddddy

It's up to you, but if you want you can make a small claims court claim from your landlord for £300 - on the basis that he was negligent.

You need to write a 'Letter before Action' first.

The court fee is about £25/£35 (which you won't get back if you lose.) In your claim, you have to clearly explain why you think your LL was negligent, itemise your losses etc.

See: https://www.citizensadvice.org.uk/consumer/going-to-court/going-to-court/taking-court-action/step-one-write-a-letter-before-action/
See: https://www.gov.uk/make-court-claim-for-money/overview

paddy's_mum

I'd be wanting to take him to the Small Claims Court just for the bu gg eration factor. It will surely be cheaper for him to give you the £300 than waste time, effort and money defending.

I'm a great believer in karma and for a man who planned to cheat the insurance companies, there should be some sort of natural justice.

He would have got away with a fraudulent claim if he could!