Has anyone sued neighbors contractor for damages?
Our home has been damaged by a foundation contractor working on a neighboring property. The damages are greater than $20,000 so says an engineer, and repairs will be very disruptive. Our insurance company says our home owner’spolicy does not cover ‘contractor negligence’. The general contractor refuses to give us any information about his insurance company,…
Our home has been damaged by a foundation contractor working on a neighboring property. The damages are greater than $20,000 so says an engineer, and repairs will be very disruptive. Our insurance company says our home owner’spolicy does not cover ‘contractor negligence’. The general contractor refuses to give us any information about his insurance company, but has offered to fix everything when he’s done. I don’t ever want to talk to him again let alone allow him to step foot in my house. Anyone out there successfully sue a contractor that was not working on your house? Interested in any information. Does one sue the owner of the property or the subcontractor who caused the damage? Are we able to recoup legal fees? What about the pain in my ass?
I disagree with anonymous 10:46. The onus is on the developer and the adjacent property owner to protect your property from damage resulting from their constuction. The refusal of their contractor to provide you with information about his insurance is a clear act of bad faith. What would you do if you had an auto accident and the other party refused to share insurance information with you? When we did work on our house we required the contractor to add our neighbors as additional parties under his insurance. It was the right thing to do and also the prudent thing to do. Your neighbors should have done it and if they didn’t you should take all reasonable measures to document the damage to your property and to establish liability.
I posted at 1:46 and I am not the contractor or the neighbor. Are you all lawyers or judges? Didn’t think so.
Okay newbies, after owning and renovating two houses I can tell you this. ALL contractors make some mistakes. And these houses ARE attached to one another. Some damage is unavoidable. In fact it happens so often a judge will likely yawn when you walk into the courtroom with this case. That this guy caused damage is not proof on its own this guy is a bad contractor, in the eyes of a judge. That’s all I was saying. (In an attempt to be helpful). If this contractor has a decent reputation (you have still not named him so there’s no way for us to know) you may have a hard time telling a judge why you should refuse to let this guy fix the damage. Try naming the contractor here, definitely check him out with BBB or other state agencies and if you find out he has a bad rep then that helps you demand to use another contractor. Meanwhile, do you plan to move soon? Why immediately leap to suing your neighbor for financial damages including pain & suffering, as it seems you suggested? Are you a flipper? Because here’s the thing, your neighbor will hate you. And he’ll probably sue YOU the moment even the smallest thing happens on your side. Yes this stuff stinks. Hello, it’s home ownership. Don’t do it if you can’t handle how much of a pain in the a** it is. Stay in a condo or co-op.
If they are building next to you I think they are supposed to list you as an additional insured party under their insurance.
Also agree with 5:54, you are under no obligation to let the contractor fix the damage. Sort of like saying that if a Doctor screws up on a surgical procdure he performed on you that a judge would be fine if that Doctor did an additional surgery to fix you up.
i believe you will be suing both the homeowner and the contractor. when it comes to lawsuits, the rule seems to be to sue everyone who could potentially be held liable.
that said, however, i’m really baffled about why your insurance company isn’t helping you. it should be your insurance company suing these people, either to avoid paying your claim, or, after they’ve paid it, as a way of trying to recoup the payout. before i went out and hired my own attorney, i’d be screaming at your insurance company.
Would you mind telling us who the contractor is.
1:46 must either be the contractor or your neighbor – definitely NOT a judge or a lawyer.
You have the right to have your property repaired to your liking by a contractor of your choosing. The contractor’s offer won’t hold up in court for a second – after all, if the damage is due to their negligence, why would you want them working on your house?
In any case, if you don’t have one already, get a very good lawyer. It won’t be cheap, but it’s less than the $20K + damage to your house.
If I’m not mistaken, since you weren’t the one hiring the contractor, it would be considered a liability claim against your neighbor. If they are found liable (and I don’t think you would have much trouble getting that judgement), it will be their insurance paying out and not yours. In any case, when this is all over, I would recommend getting a better insurance company… Chubb of Fireman’s Fund come to mind. They both seem to have a good reputation.
Also, since it sounds like your insurance company is loathe to pay out anything, I would also think of hiring an independent adjuster if need be.
there’s no reason to trust the contractor
of course you sue the owner ASAP
i agree, 1:46 is totally wrong
1:46 is uninformed and incorrect
I don’t see how a lawsuit would hold up, if the contractor IS offering to fix the damage. Whether you want him to be the one to fix it or not, he is offering to fix it. Which in the eyes of a judge should be satisfactory.