Insurer Demands Sidewalk Repair
Our insurance company sent us a letter saying that their adjuster drove by our house and concluded that we need to repair the sidewalk– which has cracks that seem no bigger than average to us. Obviously, we need to do some kind of repair to satisfy our insurer, but do we really need to do…
Our insurance company sent us a letter saying that their adjuster drove by our house and concluded that we need to repair the sidewalk– which has cracks that seem no bigger than average to us.
Obviously, we need to do some kind of repair to satisfy our insurer, but do we really need to do a full-on replacement (as the insurer suggested) or can we just patch the cracks and flatten any bumps?
We’ve never gotten any violations from the city, and we don’t want to risk violating the terms of our insurance, but we don’t want to spend big bucks on a repair we don’t need either.
Also, our insurance renewal form has a section on sidewalk repair that lists several choices, including one that says something like: “This property is a 1-3 family residence that is owner-occupied, so it is exempt from NYC Sidewalk Law.” We checked that box, because that is an accurate description of our house. But what does this mean about the necessity for the repair from the insurer’s perspective?
Any thoughts?
Was there any update on whether your insurance has a right to demand you fix the sidewalk since you have a 1-3 owner occupied home?
PS- Actually what I meant was not that the law is confusing, but that it is confusing that the insurance companies are asking us (me and Arkady) to make repairs that would actually *increase* our liability.
I’m thinking, why venture into the waters of doing my own repairs when the City will be liable otherwise? Sounds like a bad idea.
Wow, thank you, brownstoners! I’m going to call the insurance co. as JRE suggests. I’ll write with an update when I get one just in case somebody else runs into this problem. (That law is a bit confusing.)
My insurance company is demanding it too & I’ve heard from others the same thing – mine’s a single family.
City stipulates no more than 1/2 inch variance between one area & another – i.e. between pavers. Also they frown on “patches” & want an entire block poured uniformly.
I would suggest you contact your insurance company and inform them that your home is a 1-3 family owner occupied and request that they waive the requirement since the City, not you or your carrier, would be liable in the event of a slip and fall.
New York City Administrative Code §7-210 imposes a duty on a property owner to maintain the sidewalk.
Section 7-210 does not apply to one, two or three-family residential properties that are, in whole or in part, owner-occupied and used exclusively for residential purposes.
This is the reason that your insurance carrier is asking you if it is a 1-3 family owner occupied.
In your situation, if someone trips on your sidewalk, the City (not you or your insurance company) is responsible in the event of a claim. If the property is non owner occupied, occupied by more than 3 families or commercial, then you would be responsible in the event of a claim.
While the City can issue you a violation and ask you to repair the sidewalk, you have no obligation to do so, the City will ultimately make the repair at your expense.
If you do elect to make the repair yourself or by way of your contractor and someone trips on the sidewalk due to a defective repair job, you can be held responsible since you did the work.
Good luck,
Go to the DOT website and find out what is deemed a dangerous condition for a sidewalk. You don’t have to fix flags (the individual box pattern of the sidewalk) that are in good condition. Some flags can be repaired if they have minor damage. But, some of the concrete could so deteriorated that you’d be wasting money on what would be a temporary repair. Ask several contractors to bid on the work and see what they say. You don’t know which neighbors are in the same predicament as you. Some people believe that letting the City do the job is the way to go. However, by using the City you don’t control the cost or the timing of the work.
Thanks, kidbklyn!
So, it sounds like you think it’s preferable to get the city involved? (We’ve never had a violation, and it doesn’t seem likely to me that we will get one anytime soon, because our sidewalk looks pretty good relative the rest in the neighborhood.)
We do have a contractor who we could call, but it just seems excessive and kind of wasteful to pull out the whole sidewalk to fix some cracks that don’t seem dangerous at all…
In the end you will pay to have the sidewalk in front of your property repaired. The insurance company wants to limit its liability in a law suit resulting from a damaged sidewalk. You can hire your own contractor to do the work. If you own a 1 – 3 family home, the city will hire a contractor to fix the sidewalk. The city will negotiate the price and bill you for the work. This process starts either when the city issues you a violation or you self report the problem to the city by calling 31i and getting a complaint number. Once the city hires a contractor to do the work and notifies you of this, you lose the right to hire your own contractor to do the work. If the city does the work, they have the responsibility of dealing with the quality of contractor’s work. You can’t sell your propery if there are unresolved sidewalk violations. The insurance company will want to see the complaint number you received from the city or proof that the sidewalk was repaired. They will give you a period of time to do accomplish this. If you don’t, your insurance coverage will ultimately be cancelled or not renewed.