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Condo association property damage and insurance deductible in WA state

Asked over 3 years ago - Spokane, WA

I live in a condo and last Sunday, my home was flooded. My insurance hired service master cleaner and plumber, June22. The assoiciation had to hire a locksmith to open the next door because she was not home. We had to find where the water was coming from. We found out the problem. It was my nextdoor neighbor washer hose burst and left water into my home. My insurance said it was not her fault, and they will investigate her hose. If she was home, the damages would be less and my insurance said that I have to pay the one thousand dollars deductible. I feel I should not pay the deductible because it was not my fault that cause the damage. I live in my home and my neighbor did not live in her home and I went thru hell Sunday. Sharon

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Attorney answers (3)

John M. Kaman

Reputation Level 20

Answered over 3 years ago. Criminal Defense Attorney in San Francisco, CA.

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You always have to pay your deductible. That was what you contracted to do. Fault has nothing to do with it.

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Scott G Wolfe JR

Reputation Level 11

Answered over 3 years ago. Construction / Development Lawyer in Seattle, WA.

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Yes, Paul is correct....you are stuck paying your deductible as per the parameters of your insurance contract. That is not to say, however, that you don't have the right to bring a lawsuit against your neighbor to get reimbursed for the deductible expense.

If it is truly your neighbor's fault, s/he would be liable to you for the damages they caused (i.e. the $1k deductible).

Regardless of the course of action you take against your neighbor, however, you still have the obligation to your insurance company to pay this deducible.

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Steven Wayne Murray

Reputation Level 10

Answered over 3 years ago. Insurance Law Lawyer in Van Nuys, CA.

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While your deductible is your responsibility, your insurer will probably make a claim for its expenses in doing your repairs to your neighbor's insurer. When it does this, most of the time it will obtain reimbursement for you. Alternatively, you do not need to make a claim with your own insurer; you can simply make a claim against your neighbor and her insurer will probably pay for all the damage so you don't have to pay anything out of pocket.

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udxuwsu

Answered by a user, over 3 years ago.

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It is my understanding that insurance companies will not pay for repairs to other property owners unless the person who 'did' the damage was negligent. In this case, your neighbor was not negligent - what happened was an accident. Her insurance company may not pay your bill - that is why you have home owners insurance - to cover in these types of situations. If you make a claim to your insurance company, they may cover the expenses of fixing the damage, but you agreed to pay the deductible, so you will have to pay this. They can try to make a claim against your insurance company, but it remains to be seen if your neighbor's insurance company will reimburse your insurance company.

This is just like situations where someone is in a car accident that isn't there fault...but the person who caused the accident doesn't have insurance. The person whose car was damaged must pay the deductible to get their car fixed. Then their insurance company goes after the individual who did the damage.

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