Kitchen fire

Tiglet

My tenant had a bit of a fire in the kitchen yesterday. A small pan of oil caught fire and she threw water on it, with the expected consequences.

Fortunately, nobody was hurt, but there's quite a bit of damage to be dealt with. The cooker hood is a mess and there's a lot of smoke damage to the wall units each side of the cooker. There might well turn out to be more damage once I get a chance to see the place (all I've seen so far is a photo the Electrician sent after he checked the place out so the electricity could be turned back on).

The tenants haven't been living there very long, but I suspect they don't have massive reserves of cash to spend on something like this, so I'm looking for any advice on how to deal with this. In terms of the financial cost of it, I can cover that and claim it from the deposit. But I'm sure there will be other things I'll need to consider regarding making good the damage and making sure everything is working and safe afterwards.

The power is back on but the cooker has been turned off because the Electrician said it could be "full of water" (I think he means it might be a bit wet inside). I don't know how long it will take to dry out if it is, or how to check this, or whether it simply isn't safe to do that.

Basically, I'm just looking for any advice here as I've never had to deal with the aftermath of a fire before. Thanks.

Katapolt

I would have thought this sort of thing is covered by your landlord insurance? and then i suppose it depends if you penalise the tennants by taking the excess out their deposit or something, that bit i am unsure of

Tiglet

I haven't got landlord insurance (perhaps I should - that's a consideration for the future). I can afford the cost of sorting it out, but I'm really looking for advice on dealing with the practicalities of it at the moment.

DaftyDuck

My inexpert opinion...

There will be three sources of damage.... The fire, the water from extinguishing..:eek: the fire, and smoke damage.

Smoke damage may have travelled far, depending on the size of the fire. It can be cleaned off walls and surfaces quite well, but soft furnishings are more difficult. Sofa, chairs, curtains, carpets.. all may just need a wash, if that, if it wasn't bad...

The water damage... should really just be to the cooker. Most (!) cookers are built to survive an overboiled pan. If the electrician is known to you and qualified, and says it's OK, it probably is. Check it yourself, carefully!

Fire damage to units and cooker. Well, the cooker might survive water, but an oil fire might kill it. The units may be bad enough damaged that they'll need replacing... who can tell without inspection. If the floor is lino, that may have been scalded by oil splashed.

When you go to check, be slow and methodical. Take paper and clipboard, and a camera. Ideally, with the tenant, check everything carefully, and check against the check-in inventory. Agree the damage if you can.

Before going, check your Landlord Insurance policy. Work out how best to report the issue.

Fire extinguishers... Fire blankets... They are cheap, particularly the latter. However, they are only any good if the user knows what to do and, as a ll , you should instruct the. The primary instruction should always be to put their personal safety first.... so only engage a fire if they are confident. If they threw water on an oil fire, they need educating....

Check the smoke alarm system while you are there. Indeed, take along some spare alarms to add, as your tenants may be accident-prone...

DaftyDuck

I know it's a smartarze thing to say now, but you really, really REALLY should have landlord insurance. Really!

Tiglet

Some really good advice there - thanks!:beer:

I don't think the smoke travelled very far. As soon as she threw the water over the pan, I think she just panicked, ran out of the room and shut the door behind her. They haven't been there very long, and they haven't moved their furniture in yet.

The electrician checked the wiring last night at short notice. I don't think he checked the cooker but just removed the fuse as a precaution. I'll call him today and take his advice about what to do about it. I'm assuming that, as the pan was really small, there wasn't a lot of oil involved, so the cooker might have escaped damage from the oil.

The floor has dark-coloured ceramic tiles, so I'm hoping they will have escaped relatively unscathed.

I'm a bit wary of providing a fire extinguisher, as they can sometimes make matters worse if used incorrectly, or on the wrong type of fire, but a fire blanket could be a good idea for the kitchen, as could an extra smoke alarm.

MEM62

No landlord insurance :eek:
Get it sorted - fast.

Do you have everything else in place? consent to let if mortgaged, gas safety inspection certificate, electrical inspection etc?

Do it right, no point in taking risks.

AlwaysWorking

No landlord insurance...so if the fire had spread and the house burned down...?! I would get that sorted today.

Do the tenants have a lease and, if so, what does it say?

silvercar

You pay (or claim on your insurance) for damage to the property.

Your tenants claim on their contents insurance for damage to their contents.

You claim from your tenants for any damage caused to your property, so that would include the excess if you had insurance.

silvercar

MEM62 wrote: »

No landlord insurance :eek:
Get it sorted - fast.

Do you have everything else in place? consent to let if mortgaged, gas safety inspection certificate, electrical inspection etc?

Do it right, no point in taking risks.

Landlord insurance isn't compulsory.

If you have a mortgage and it's a house not a flat, your mortgage company would usually insist on you having buildings insurance. That won't cover you for damage caused by tenants unless you have landlord insurance.

Smodlet

From what I have read on this board, electrical inspections are not usually required except in HMOs but it might well be a good idea to have one now!

No LL insurance. What if a ceiling collapsed and killed one of your tenants? Don't you think you ought to be covered for when their family sues you? Just an idea.