This was reported to me over the weekend , at around midnight. Water from the bathroom above , pouring through ceiling into my tenant’s bathroom. No one at home in the flat above . and the water couldn’t immediately be stopped. The water has now finally stopped and management company have responded that they cannot locate the owner of the above flat . The occupants are still away .
The electric to the bathroom is off . What are my choices moving forward? There’s little point trying to do any repairs until the source of water is located . Should I sit tight, or claim against the management’s insurance for alternative accommodation? I’m aware that the insurance isn’t great , but thats not really my concern .
Ask mgt co to turn off external stopcock for flat above if they know where it is
Check your LL insurance cover and any building insurance cover but doesnt seem to meet criteria of being uninhabitable so you are unlikely to be required to rehouse tenants
Once the source of the leak is known and fixed, you will have some idea of whether its down to the flat’s owners (eg theirs or their builders negligence). If so, you could claim against them for your repairs. If not, it will be a claim against the buildings insurance if necessary. I say if necessary because I have some experience of this in several properties and as long as its clean water, the damage may only be cosmetic once its all fully dried out. A lick of barrier paint and emulsion may be all thats required. You may have to remove light fittings to allow all the water to drain away. If the property is tenanted, you may also need to have an electrician sign it off as safe before re-using the electrics.
If the leak has stopped, then it looks like someone has intervened and it might be possible to effect some repairs. Someone somewhere, has done something to stop the leak, so ask around. It could be your own tenants if they turned off your stopcock (my pipes run above my bathroom ceiling), or it could be coming from two floors above if for example, they overflowed a bath. Leaks do not stop on their own unless one off spills or possibly a washing machine leak. I wonder which floor your flat is on and how many flats above you? I would be knocking on doors.
You should focus on getting the source of the leak identified first, as there’s not much point starting repairs until that’s been dealt with. The bathroom electrics should remain switched off until they’ve been properly checked and confirmed safe.
You should also keep everything documented and continue chasing the management company to locate the owner or occupier of the flat above. The relevant insurer should be notified as well, so the incident and damage are formally recorded.
If the bathroom is unusable or the tenant can’t reasonably stay in the property, you should check the landlord’s insurance policy to see whether alternative accommodation is covered. The priority is getting the leak stopped and the property made safe before dealing with the repairs.
