Legal Question in Landlord & Tenant Law in Pennsylvania

Our landlord recently had some work done by contractors. They unplugged the sump pump to use the outlet and we did not know this. We were not aware of this outlet being used by the contractors. In fact the landlord never told us the recently installed sump pump was even something that was plugged in. It rained hard yesterday, and we had about 2-3 inches of water in the basement until we realized why the pump was not working. I called my landlord immediately to tell him what happened and had to leave a message on his service. We are still cleaning up the mess. Who is responsible for our inconvenience. I think the landlord told the contractor about the outlet that they could use. I think he should compensate us by reducing next month's rent as it surely was not our fault. Thank goodness we were home when this happened or we would have had more water come in.


Asked on 9/05/11, 10:41 am

1 Answer from Attorneys
Joseph Hanyon MHK Attorneys

There is no perfect answer in your situation. Ultimately, the question is whether your landlord knew or should have known that the sump pump would be unplugged. This will likely be very difficult to prove. To sue the contractor, you would have to convince a finder of fact that they were negligent in failing to plug the sump pump back in. If you have renter�s insurance, you should make a claim immediately, especially if any of your possessions were damaged. You can also attempt to make such a claim against your landlord�s homeowner�s insurance policy, if you do not have renter�s insurance.

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Answered on 9/07/11, 7:05 am


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