|
|
Question Title: Fire Damage
| Question: 73 |
| A visitor to a tenanted property started a fire by tipping an ashtray into a bin before the cigarette had been properly extinguished. The damage was extensive and it is not possible for the tenant to live in the property until the repairs are completed. Does the tenant still have to pay rent ? Who is responsible for the costs of restoring the flat to its original condition ? The tenant was not in the property when the fire started.
|
| Answer: |
| The first place to look for an answer is in the tenancy agreement. Without sight of the agreement I will assume that there are no special conditions relating to what will happen in the case of a fire caused by negligence. It is important to note the difference between negligence and an accident. Often the landlord will release the tenant from their rental obligations where damage has been caused by accident and there will commonly be a clause included in the agreement to this effect. This would not normally release the tenant from his obligation to pay rent where the fire was caused by negligence. Accident means a mishap or untoward event and is defined as "event without apparent cause, an unexpected or unforeseen course of events". This fire has clearly been caused by the negligence of the tenant's visitor, it was not an unforeseen or unexpected event, the visitor should have ensured that the cigarette was property extinguished . It is therefore the responsibility of the visitor to restore the property and for any losses incurred by the landlord and the tenant. The landlord should claim through his insurer's who will no doubt investigate the incident and seek to recover its' costs through the visitor. The tenant would still be responsible for the rent during the period it takes to reinstate the property and may claim this cost from the visitor. As the tenant is responsible for the behaviour of any of his guests or visitors, should the visitor fail to compensate any who have suffered a loss, the responsibility would fall on the tenant.
|
|
References:
|
Pages:
|
Hyperlinks:
|
|
Letting Update Journal |
Apr 2002 page13 |
letting-update-journal.html
|
|
Letting Handbook |
Chapter 11 |
letting-handbook-and-factsheets.html
|
For more information, discuss on the Forum
|
|
