City of Buford Creates Issue for Tenant
The least favorite part of being a landlord is the late night emergency calls. Fortunately, it is rare that it is an emergency – but that was not the case a couple of days ago. We got a call on the emegency line that a house was flooded and that the ceiling caved in. This particular home has the bedrooms downstairs and the leak was on the main floor.
It appears that the City of Buford went out to establish the utilties and turn on the water. Unfortunately, the tenant wasn’t home at the time they opened the water line and the washer wasn’t hooked up, but the water valve was open, so the result was a home with several inches of water. Below are some pictures of the damages:
Since there was little that we were able to do to assist at midnight, we asked them if they could stay with a family member until we could resolve the issue. First thing the next day, we dispatched our crews and found that it was a terrible mess. We had already notified the owner via text the night before so that he was prepared. He called the City of Buford and found that they were not going to take any responsibility for the issue.
The tenant’s personal items were also harmed. So we advised the tenant to also get involved. They called the City of Buford and was told that they were not responsible. So, if they cannot prove that the City of Buford was at fault, they will be out of pocket for their possessions as they did not have rental insurance. We ALWAYS recommend having rental insurance for these types of issues. If they did, the insurance company may be willing to pursue the City for them. As it stands, their only option would be to continue forward with their claim against the City.
The owner is also pursuing the City of Buford as his damages are very extensive. Historically water companies will turn the water off at the meter so that this problem doesn’t happen and leave a note for the resident. So stay tuned and we will update you on the progress.
Isn’t being a landlord great? Never a dull moment!
April 21st, 2010 at 6:03 pm
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