Cause for concern?

[Celeste]

Hi all

MarkC my knowledge of such this is,

If the letter you received came from the tenanat and not a lawyer, treat it this way - write a letter back stating that the lifted paving you mentioned was repaired, add date and the repairer. Then state that I have not been negligent in the maintenance of the property and therefore will not be paying the compensation you have requested.

Now, the main thing to keep in mind - DO NOT spend any money on legal stuff until he puts his money where his mouth is and hires a Lawyer.

And, then when a lawyer gets involved, they will send you a demand letter or such 1st, do the same again, send them the same letter, until they take it further - meaning court documents.

I worked for friedman, lurie & singh for 2 years learnt a few tactics.
Do not take it seriuosly until you see offical court docs, he will not keep paying for legal letters for long.

I got out of a 3 years lease this way, 3 no way letters to the lawyer and the landlord gave up.

 

[sailor]

I have until COB Friday May 18th to come good or he will pursue legal action to recoup these costs and will also seek compensation “for pain and suffering, and difficulties in performing his job that he has recently commenced.”

I'm thinking there are more considerations here:

1. I thought he was on a Disability Pension? As far as I'm aware that is a permanent CentreLink pension and the person is disabled beyond employability. If he was on Sickness Benefits that would by definition mean his condition was temporary.
2. Has he commenced his recent employment with his back-up leg? As his original one was damaged in his alleged fall.

 

[Les]

G'day MarkC,

On a re-read (I HAD to - it's a hoot ) I noted this comment of yours:-

The fellow has cause no end of greif since he moved in, I have already issued an eviction notice (for failing to meet lease conditions)

1. Is this just part of "get square" on his part perhaps?
2. Have you seen evidence of the damage to his prosthesis?
3. If so, does it appear to be consistent with "tripping on a paver" (or more like "hit with a hammer"?)
4. Does it appear to be "still usable"? A fracture of a regular leg would be incapacitating - but with a prosthesis, this may NOT be the case. It may simply be cracked (fractured), yet still quite functional.

I guess I'm with most others. A threatening letter from him is far from being a threatening letter from a lawyer.

My only reason for posting tonight is to highlight those 4 questions though. And I'm also interested in the outcome,

Regards,

 

[Mark C]

Celeste, thanks for your advice, I will respond with a letter as you have outlined.

Sailor, I am not aware of his working status although I do know that centrelink pay part of his rent. If he had a job I’m sure he would loose his centrelink pension or at least have it reduced this has not been the case.

You mention his back-up leg, my Nana had a leg amputated when she was in her 30’s. She had a new leg made every couple of years (she lived to be 93) and as such had a cupboard full of “back-up” legs. Certainly raised a few eyebrows when we tried to dispose of them after she passed away.

Les,

1. He actually told my PM that he was going to sue for damages prior to me issuing him with an eviction. This would look bad for me however I have documented proof that I have asked the PM to evict him some months back but was told he and his family where on an overseas holiday and I would have to wait for them to return.
2. I haven’t seen anything other than his letter.

I agree how can a prosthetic leg be rendered US after one trip, the quote I got was to replace everything from the comfort liner to shuttle lock (what ever this is). I’m starting to think he stood on a land mine not a paver.

Thanks for your comments.

Mark

 

[Raddles]

HI again Mark
you seem to not have skeletons in the cupboard but "legs"!

You should still send a copy of the letter and your reply to the insurance company - as if your policy is anything like mine - you are obliged to notify the insurance company of an event that may lead to a claim - and you are obliged to do everything in your power to mitigate any loss or damage (which you already are doing by having your PM check the property).
When you write your letter - once again remember your obligations to your insurer not to carry out repairs or dispose of damaged property until your insurer has had an opportunity to inspect it. They may want to have an inspector review the whole situation so there is a report which could be used in any court action.
I note Celeste's comments - but I too have experience as a legal practitioner and legal costs assessor - and often cases fail due to problems with evidence - or an insurer will make a commercial decision to settle a matter as they are concerned about their evidence available. You want to make it as easy as possible for your insurance company to deny the land mine claim.

 

[Mark C]

Raddles, good point. I have instructed the PM to photograph the pavers and take a maintenance man with her so he can ensure the area is roped off and made safe if required.

I also phoned the person who prepared the quote for repair of the prosthetic leg. It turns out that the quote was for a full replacement. I asked could a fall on pavers result in the entire leg needing replacement? He informed me it was very unlikely.

Mark

 

[TryHard]

I asked could a fall on pavers result in the entire leg needing replacement? He informed me it was very unlikely.

Mark

Diarise that one with a time and date, Mark C Hopefully this leech will rue the day he ever tried to use you for a free lunch-leg

 

[sailor]

Raddles, good point. I have instructed the PM to photograph the pavers and take a maintenance man with her so he can ensure the area is roped off and made safe if required.

I also phoned the person who prepared the quote for repair of the prosthetic leg. It turns out that the quote was for a full replacement. I asked could a fall on pavers result in the entire leg needing replacement? He informed me it was very unlikely.

Mark

Smart move phoning the repairer...deserves kudos for good thinking. Is the repairer prepared to put his opinion in writing? This would certainly help your case.

 

[letiha]

Mark, is your IP in QLD?

 

[Mark C]

Thanks Sailor DD is something I do well and enjoy, thanks.

Letiha, the IP is in Mandurah WA.

I spoke to one of my lawyers today regarding work on another project I'm doing. I bought up this case and his opinion was along the lines as what others here have posted. "Until there are court docs any letter he or his lawyer writes isn't worth the paper it's written on."

I will keep posting updates as things progress.

 

[letiha]

Thats good advice Mark. On Queensland the relevant legislation is the Personal Injuries Proceedings Act (PIPA) I'm sure they will have similar in W.A.

A Notice of Claim form has to be served by the injured party normally within a certain time frame. It is then you would ring up your insurer and pass it on to them.

the important thing to remember is if you have the place insured this will cost you $0. The insurer will take over everything and other than providing them with the info that they want you won't have to do much else.

 

[Mark C]

I had until the COB Friday 18th May to pay the tenants demands for money to replace his prosthetic leg or I would be hearing from this solicitor, obviously I didn’t pay.

After receiving the claim from my tenant I asked my PM manage to attend the property, photograph the damaged pavers and rope off the area incase my insurer needed to see the site (if it went that far). The tenant denied access to the PM and she had to wait 7 days once she gave notice to inspect the property. She did this yesterday along with a paving contractor, please see photo of sunken paving.

Below the paving is a soak well, obviously this is why the sand below the pavers has disappeared. Why did it take 11 years for this to happen? It is the opinion of the paving contractor that the pool (located uphill from paving) was being filled via a hose and left to overflow for some time causing the bedding sand to be washed away. “This also caused other paving damage that was fixed last year and is also the cause of this damage”.

It appears that paving repair I paid for last year was not from the result of tree roots as I was told, but from overfilling the pool and flooding the area.

I'm not convinced the tenant has actually sustained any injury on my property, he has not shown evidence of the damaged leg and has still not requested for any repairs to be done to the property.

It is worth noting that his prised Harley Davison is now missing from the garage.

I have since been requested (via PM) to call my tenants solicitor to “clear this matter up”. As yet I have not.

I’m planning on doing nothing.

 

[Raddles]

Hi Mark
I would still be letting the insurer know of the latest developments just in case they want to get an assessor out there.

Is the pool on your property? - as whoever overfilled the pool has contributed to this problem.
thanks

 

[Raddles]

Hi Mark
also could you clarify the relevance of the Harley?
is it perhaps the opportunity to provide another lame joke?
thanks

 

[Ajax]

How much is a prosthetic leg (and fitting)...I imagine it would not be cheap.

I would most certainly want to see the damaged prosthetic leg firstly to satisfy myself he is not simply realising assets (maybe selling the Harley then claiming for damages for the prosthetic leg).



Ajax

 

[Pushka]

I think the point is that the Harley might be missing because it has been in a dingle, which might also result in injuries to one's leg.
Maybe you can counter sue the tenant for damages to repair the paving caused by flooding the area?

 

[Raddles]

The plot thickens - Mark had you thought of offering this story to one of the TV channels? There must be some money to be had in such circumstances!

Until your tenant can prove that the paver did it - not the absent Harley - and produces the damaged leg to be reviewed by your insurer - I would say there is no cause for concern. Perhaps in addition to the damage to your paving - perhaps you should be suing him for pain and suffering and unnecessary stress.

 

[The Y-man]

The plot thickens - Mark had you thought of offering this story to one of the TV channels? There must be some money to be had in such circumstances!
.

Yeah.... imagine the public reception that guy wasting all that water is going to get! He won't be able to walk out of his house!!

Cheers,

The Y-man

 

[sailor]

I think the point is that the Harley might be missing because it has been in a dingle, which might also result in injuries to one's leg.
Maybe you can counter sue the tenant for damages to repair the paving caused by flooding the area?

Yes...I must admit my thoughts were along the same lines. And if you were to advise your insurance coy of these facts, I'm sure they would have the contacts to find out if he is:
a. hitting you for a bogus claim, and
b. hitting both you and his own insurance coy.

The plot thickens - Perhaps in addition to the damage to your paving - perhaps you should be suing him for pain and suffering and unnecessary stress.

It might easily be determined that he has caused the pavers to move without taking care of the property he's renting. You might also be able to do a counter claim, although I think your LL insurance coy might be interested in doing this.

Yeah.... imagine the public reception that guy wasting all that water is going to get! He won't be able to walk out of his house!!
Cheers,
The Y-man

Good grief! I hadn't thought of that. He might not be able to get another place to rent if he becomes that notorious!

 

[Mark C]

Thanks for the input everyone, the pool is on the property as far as I’ve been advised the tenant was responsible for overflowing the pool.

I have a bore installed on the property so that the pool and gardens are well maintained, with or without water restrictions.

The reason he has one leg is the result of a motorbike accident, he is also the proud owner of a “Vintage Harley”, in his words "worth $70K". My PM has advised that it is now no longer on the property.

I will be reviewing what action I can take to recoup costs to repair pavers damaged by overflowing the pool. The problem is proving that this is what happened.

Along with many other repairs this tenant has caused e.g. He unplugged the retic system to use the power outlet for xmas lights. The retic backup battery lasted for a couple of weeks before running out of power. 2 months later the grass, trees and hedging where dead and my PM charged me to send out a retic guy to sort out the problem.

PM also sent out an electrician to replace 9vt battery in a smoke detector!

I have since changed PM about 4 months ago, can imagine my new PM thinking she can’t believe her luck.

Insurance company has been notified and I await their instruction to repair the pavers. So far their response has been "thanks for letting us know, we will do nothing until we receive court documents".