Ask an Expert

Ask an Expert: Should I get my insurance involved over a leak from my dishwasher?

Teri Rogers Headshot - Floral
By Teri Karush Rogers  |
September 24, 2013 - 2:04PM
image

Q. Our dishwasher leaked into our neighbor's apartment and damaged her living room ceiling.  Our place is fine.  Do we need to involve our insurance company or just hers and offer to pay her deductible? Or are we better off paying the super to fix up her ceiling?

A. This would be easier to answer if your dishwasher had caused a fire instead of a flood, say our experts.

"There really is no way of knowing how extensive water damage is," says apartment insurance broker Jeff Schneider of Gotham Brokerage. "Water can travel surprisingly long distances.  You might be surprised to find that it has entered an apartment several floors below or to the side and destroyed artwork or a floor. If the owner is on vacation, you might not find out for several weeks."

If you fail to notify your insurance company now, you could be on the hook personally should other problems come to light down the road, potentially including mold.

Moreover, points out co-op and condo attorney Dean Roberts of Norris McLaughlin & Marcus, "even if your neighbor's insurance pays for the damage, less the deductible, her insurance company has the legal right to seek reimbursement from the person with the leaking dishwasher under the theory of subrogation."

That means your insurance company will be notified anyway "when  your neighbor's insurer tries to recover the insurance payment in full--not just the deductible--from you and your insurer, assuming you are at fault," says Schneider.


Trouble at home? Get your NYC apartment-dweller questions answered by an expert! Send us your questions.

See all Ask an Expert.

Related: 

Is your landlord requiring you to get renters insurance? Here's why

Teri Rogers Headshot - Floral

Teri Karush Rogers

Founder & Publisher

Founder and publisher Teri Karush Rogers launched Brick Underground in 2009. As a freelance journalist, she had previously covered New York City real estate for The New York Times. Teri has been featured as an expert on New York City residential real estate by The New York Times, New York Daily News, amNew York, NBC Nightly News, The Real Deal, Business Insider, the Huffington Post, and NY1 News, among others. Teri earned a BA in journalism and a law degree from New York University.

Brick Underground articles occasionally include the expertise of, or information about, advertising partners when relevant to the story. We will never promote an advertiser's product without making the relationship clear to our readers.

topics: