Insurance and Flooring Problem

[thejanegirl]

I live with my partner and four friends in a rented house furnished by the landlord.

 

Our dishwasher broke down just before Christmas and despite repeated calls to the landlord, he didn't come out for about three weeks.

 

During this time the dishwasher leaked, unbeknown to us, and all the real wooden floor has cracked and buckled.

 

We have rented accom insurance with Endsleigh, who say they won't cover it as it is the landlord's responsibility.

 

Now our landlord says HIS insurance doesn't cover it, ours should, and if we don't sort it, the repair bill is coming out of our bond.

 

The work is estimated at about £3k - help!

[MrShed]

If he has not attended to the fault, he is responsible. The insurance situation makes no difference.

[thejanegirl]

It does in the sense of where does the money come from to fix the floor, as our contents does not cover and he CLAIMS his insurance doesn't either.

 

We suspect he does not have the correct insurance.

 

He used to live here and we think he has just left the buildings cover in place, rather than set up specialist landlord insurance for furnished properties.

 

Which also makes us wonder if he has a BTL mortgage in place or permission to let from his mortgage company.

 

What are the repercussions (for him) of not notifying your mortgage company you are letting your property?

[MrShed]

It doesnt, for you, as you are not responsible. How he funds it is his problem.

[blacksheep1979]

It will probably state in the contract that you have to report all faults within a reasonable period of time - it is the landlords fault if he has failed to act on this information. How did you inform him and do you have evidence of this?

[thejanegirl]

the dishwasher died on the 18/12/06 we sent him a text on 19/12/06 he failed to come out 14/01/07 to look at it

[bottomburp]

deleted

[MrShed]

I agree 100% with everything BB has posted, both with regards the insurance issue and whos responsibility it is also.

 

With regards whether his mortgage company knows it is BTL or not, stay well out of it. It is firmly out of the realms of "your business", so I would not go there. However, the penalties are basically that the mortgage company will probably do little other thanup their interest or similar. Technically, the mortgage company can attempt repossession for breach of T&Cs, but the chances of this are extremely slim.

[thejanegirl]

thanks everyone.

 

My OH is going to see the council's private tenant solictor during the week.

 

An interesting point is during a conversation between my OH and the landlord (witnessed by me), the landlord suggested we change to an insurance company that WOULD let us claim for the floor, wait a month, then bung a claim in.

 

He backtracked pretty quick when we pointed out this was insurance fraud, something we are not willing to do.

[MrShed]

Even if you could claim, I would not, as it is not your responsibility.

[princess jane]

UPDATE -

 

Our landlord has obviously read or seen something to make him realise he is not on un-shakeable ground.

 

My OH got a phone call today, app the landlord's insurance now WILL cover the damage.

 

The flooring is to be replaced this week at no cost to ourselves, there is no more talk of us being wrongly insured or being in any way resposible.

 

Thanks for your advice all.

 

Jane

[bottomburp]

delete

[princess jane]

PS just out of interest, who do other tenants insure through?

 

As there are four us living together, all young professionals, we were knocked back by everyone but Endsleigh for being too "high risk".

 

Basically you can marry someone you've just met and get home insurance anywhere, but live with two longterm pals and a partner and you'll all be smashing the place up.

 

Endsleigh are fine, BTW, £12-ish a month to cover all our possessions, computers, laptop, TVs etc.

[blacksheep1979]

whats the odds that he insured it through someone who would cover it when this first happened and has just claimed?

 

Conggrats anyway

[taz_in_2001]

I had exactly the same problem my housing association wouldn't pay up after my washing machine leaked went through the kitchen into the hall and through to the living/dining room they told me it wasn't covered under buildings insurance as it wasn't fixed to the floor hmmmmmm most of it was ceramic tiles but there ya go, well I went 6 months with no floor with a new born baby my insurance contents cover kept saying that it was buildings insurance as it was flooring couldn't get much luck anywhere so I read through my more than policy an low an behold there was a excemption for tenants phoned head office and had it all fixed had to claim on my insurance mind but point of this is everyone is trying to con you read your landlords policy and also insurance policy, if they state they dont cover belonging placed in the house then read insurance they should have a sub section (really small writing with confusing words best to have a dictionary) about tenants, phone head office if you cannot get help from customer services etc, the cus ser guy that was speaking to me whilst trying to claim was reading the tenants section but he was saying this word cant remember it exactly and saying that it meant they wouldn't pay out under sections bla bla bla when really it meant that they would only pay out under sections bla bla bla

[bottomburp]

deleted

[taz_in_2001]

The difference here tax_in_2001 is (from your post) it appears that you owned your washing machine - You owned the faulty appliance and it's your machine that caused the damage. Thus your insurance should pay.

 

But thejanegirl's original post says the landlord owns the dishwasher that caused the damage - and that means that the damage caused by his faulty machine is covered by his insurance.

 

 

Oh right, my fault I mis-read. I know a few tenants around by me their insurance companys counter claim off the landlords insurance is there any chance of this ?