Does my daughter have to pay landlord for plumbing repairs?
My daughter’s friend dropped a small compact in the home my daughter and hear 2 friends rent. A visiting friend told my daughter that she dropped a compact into their toilet, and the toilet did stop working. My daughter told the landlord, and my daughter and housemates agreed to pay the plumber.
However, the plumber found no compact, or any other obstruction, inside the toilet (he removed the toilet and looked). But the toilet still doesn’t work.
The plumber believes, however, that the problem is with the toilet, which is older. He said the flow isn’t right–and he said that the toilet should be replaced with a newer, ‘fast flush’ (I think that’s what he called it) toilet.
My daughter’s willing to pay the plumber the cost of installing a new toilet, but I don’t see why she should have to. She’s also afraid the landlord will make her pay for the toilet itself–
but this sounds like a maintenance problem to me. After all, there’s no compact in the toilet now, and everyone says a compact is too small to block the pipes–and again, the plumber feels it’s the toilet itself that’s problem.
Should my daughter have to pay the plumber to put a new toilet in?
Yahoo’s computer must have glitched–it turned my first paragraph into babble I didn’t write!
Thanks, everyone–tomorrow I’ll re-post the question after reviewing my daughter’s email–there was more to what the plumber said than I’ve mentioned.
SEE NEW POSTING–THANKS!
If the plumber is stating that the replacement is not because of tenant damage, then they CANNOT charge her.
She needs to get a statement from the plumber stating that she (and friends) did not cause it to be replaced.
If they try to force her to pay for it, then she can take them to court.
The plumber is out for extra money, tell him to get lost. Pay for the search and if it stops up again, call the landlord to fix it. with his money. And the person who lost the compact should pay the plumber not the leaseholders. The person who lost the compact can contact their homeowners insurance company and put in a claim for damages.
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If the toilet worked well before the compact was dropped and flushed down, then, yes, it is her responsibility to pay for the replacement. It could have gone down and is now stuck somewhere and causing problems. She admitted what happened and it should not be the landlord’s fault.
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In Calfornia, it would get to a court or arbitrator and be a matter of documentation. The one with the most and better documentation wins when the issue is not clear.
Your daughter admitted to the compact entering the toilet.
Your daughter agreed that it was her responsibility to pay for the plumber to repair the damage.
The landlord will have this documentation.
Your daughter will need to have documentation from experts, like the plumber to show definatively that it was the toilet, not the compact that caused the damage. It will then be up to the findings of the arbitrator or judge.
As a property manager, I would be able to win this against your daughter within 3 court days and a ten minute court hearing. You may fare better if the landlord is not practiced in this area.
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I think the compact is still stuck in the toilet and since the people inside damaged it they should pay for everything.
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It sounds like dad should talk to the landlord. Sometimes that is all it takes, besides that is what your daughter is hoping for anyway.
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If the plumber is stating that the replacement is not because of tenant damage, then they CANNOT charge her.
She needs to get a statement from the plumber stating that she (and friends) did not cause it to be replaced.
If they try to force her to pay for it, then she can take them to court.
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I’m a property manager
The plumber should provide a written report showing the cause of the problem and his recommendation to correct it. That should be all that is needed to get the landlord to pay for it. She should not have to pay for it.
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