Leaseholder upstairs confirms his bath leaked into mine, refuses to pay repair costs

G_M

pinklady21 wrote: »

If the plumber was a professional person, won't they have indemnity insurance? Can a claim be made against this?

No.

OP cannot caim against an insurance policy that is not in his name.

If a claim for negligence is made against the plumber, he can claim on his insurance.

steampowered

eddddy wrote: »

Mu understanding is that, in law, the plumber is acting as the agent of the neighbour - i.e he carrying out the instructions of the neighbour to refurb the bathroom.

Therefore, the neighbour is responsible for the actions of his agent.

This is a very commonly held belief, so you are in good company, but in legal terms it isn't quite right. Independent contractors generally are not agents.

See http://www.trethowans.com/site/library/legalnews/vicarious_liability_when_is_an_employer_responsible

Employers are not generally responsible for the actions of independent contractors, however there are exceptions to this. In particular, where there is a non-delegable duty - i.e. the employer fails to supervise the contractor properly, or where the employer fails to take sufficient steps to ensure a competent contractor is appointed. In such cases an employer may still be found vicariously liable.