Dear Claudienne

We spoke today (April 3, 2020) regarding a sad situation where a ground floor apartment I own in Kingston and St Andrew was flooded by water coming from the apartment directly above mine.

My apartment was occupied by a tenant who lived there for two and a half years during which water from upstairs flooded my apartment five times. The last time the apartment was flooded was on January 28, 2020. Can you imagine at 4:30 am my tenant who is sleeping is awakened by dirty filthy water pouring down on her in her bed . The apartment above mine on the second floor, has an old dirty carpet that has not been cleaned in 15 years plus.

On February 29, 2020 my tenant moved out. She was an excellent tenant, who paid her rent promptly. But the risk of mould setting in caused her to terminate the rental agreement and move out.

The apartment was flooded in October 2019 and again on January 28, 2020 and the water damaged the ceiling. It took much effort on my part to get the owner of the upstairs apartment to repair the ceiling and the repairs were not completed until March 11, 2020 after my tenant had moved.

Previous flooding in my apartment took place on April 1, 2018 , May 30, 201 9 and September 29, 2019.

Over the years there have been water leaks from upstairs into my apartment, but the owner although acknowledging that the damage was the result of plumbing problems in his apartment, has always been hesitant in taking proper corrective action. My appeals and moral suasion have also not persuaded him to have the plumbing in his apartment upgraded.

The flooding in the upstairs apartment which usually occurred when his tenant was overseas, was caused by pipes in the kitchen and bathroom bursting or blowing out under pressure of the water. No other apartment in the complex has that problem.

The main point is that the pipes were never fixed properly as he left it up to his tenant and the plumbers whom the tenant employed were not competent.

Resulting from the flooding of my apartment, my tenant claimed $99,173.76 for damage to her personal items. However, he has refused to settle the claim and has argued that he could not settle it until his tenant returned to Jamaica on March 6, 2020. Needless to say his tenant has no locus standi in the matter. He is the registered owner.

In the meantime, I had to pay my ex- tenant the $99,173.76 she claimed, as it seems she would have sued me.

Since my tenant left a real estate company has been assigned to find a new tenant, but the COVID-19 health crisis has slowed things down and I have not found a suitable tenant yet.

In the meantime, I have been loosing rental income of $45,000 per month and it is now almost two months since the tenant left because of the situation. The place is up for rent only because the tenant was forced to leave. And you don’t get a good tenant overnight! I had a very good tenant and his negligence has now disrupted my stream of rental income.

But even as I am in search of a new tenant I am nervous as I fear that my apartment could be flooded again.

I also believe that he needs to give me a guarantee that new pipes have been retrofitted in the kitchen and bathroom and that the problem will not reoccur.

On March 14, 2020, I sent him the following claim for damage to my apartment but to date he has not responded:

“This letter serves as a reminder that on the 11th of February you promised to settle the claim after the 6th of March for damage caused to my apartment by flooding from your apartment.

That claim amounts to $99,173.76. Of course no payment has been made to date. I would like to know now when this payment will be made! I am asking that this be settled within the next 5 days. Please see details of the claim made by the former tenant.

Please be reminded that the tenant had to terminate her tenancy and move out of the apartment, effective 29th February. After five floodings in two and a half years the loss of rental income will be another cost. The apartment was rented for $45,000.

All this is hurting me as I just had a major surgery and out of pocket and now I’m loosing rental income.”

I would appreciate your help in this matter.

CH

Dear CG

Tell Claudienne has been in communication with the owner of the apartment in question. He responded to Tell Claudienne on April 3, 2020 as follows:

“Good afternoon.

I have just received a message from my tenant who has been in the apartment for over 15 years . The decision is that I will pay CH and he will reimburse me whenever he returns.

He is overseas. having gone to see his very ill mother who subsequently died. This required him to remain for the funeral, and lo and behold, COVID-19 resulted in a closure of the airports in his country and also Jamaica. I indicated this to CH as he promised to return on the 6th March 2020 ,then the 23rd March 2020 and now there is no date as the COVID situation has worsened.

I have had a number of complaints from CH concerning water leaks and damages over the years and I have repaired the leaks on each occasion.

I have tried to encourage my tenant to allow me to refurbish the building, but have met with refusals on his part.

I empathise with CH as the inconvenience is regretted, however, everytime I indicate to my tenant that I will pay, he says no, he is responsible and will settle .

It is clear that I need to sell this apartment as the litany of woes are too much for me .

I have indicated to my tenant in a message today [April 3], that I will settle with CH and I may need to enter the apartment and remove his belongings in an effort to complete a sale of the property as is.

I am prepared to meet with CH to arrange payment , but will not be able to give any guarantee on further leaks as I will be selling the property.”

Tell Claudienne notes that the owner of the upstairs apartment has communicated with you and agreed to lodge the money you paid to your former tenant to your bank account.

However you have advised Tell Claudienne that he only lodged $65,009.61 to your bank account on April 7, 2020 and not the $99,173.76 that you paid your former tenant.

The column notes that on November 1, 2019 your former tenant claimed $65,009.61 for items damaged due to the leaking roof.

The damage was as follows: iron board $1,250; queen-sized bed base $38,138.61; 1 Ralph Lauren pillow $3,588.00; 2 white bath towels $2,208.00; 2 gift bags $500.00; tissue paper $150.00; 6 sheets gift paper $600.00; duffle bags $7,645.00; 1 suitcase $7,645.00; 1 new black dress; $1,390.00; 1 new blouse $695.00 – Total $ 65,009.61.

Then after the flooding of the apartment on January 28, 2020 your former tenant claimed an additional $34,164 for water damage to her mattress.

The owner of the upstairs apartment told Tell Claudienne on Wednesday, April 8, 2020 that he could not see how the water could have damaged the entire bed. He said that he would only pay the $30, 000 your tenant claimed for the water damage to the base of the bed.

Tell Claudienne suggests that you contact a lawyer to assist you to get the guarantee you are seeking in regard to the retrofitting of new pipes in the kitchen and bathroom of the apartment on the second floor. The lawyer can also help you to argue your case to recover loss of rental income and to be repaid the $34,164 you paid your former tenant for her mattress.

We wish you all the best.

Have a problem with a store, utility, a company? Telephone 876-936-9436 or cell # 876-484-1349 or write to: Tell Claudienne c/o

Sunday Finance, Jamaica Observer, 40-42 1/2 Beechwood Avenue, Kingston 5; or e-mail:edwardsc@jamaicaobserver.com. Please include a contact phone number.