Legal Question in Real Estate Law in Pennsylvania

I live in philadelphia,pa. the house I live in is in my mother and fathers names, my mother left my father about 9 years ago and he is elderly, blind and bedridden so I moved in to take care of him. Ive been living here for 9 years now, my mother has no connection to us at all except for her neame being on the deed and insurance papers. Last week the corner row house which is 3 houses away from me and unoccupied flooded, causing major damage to my basement. All of our belongings were destroyed. The guy who owns the corner property will not take responsibility for this, his insurance wont cover it and the insurance adjuster said they cant do anything for me because I dont have an insurance policy in my name. my mother, whos name is on the insurance wont sign the papers, she is actually siding with the homeowner of the corner property saying it isnt his fault but leaving a house empty for years without checking on it periodicly i feel does fault him!! So my question is what can I do? Like i said all of our belongings were damaged, my children had a playroom in the basement and all of their toys are ruined. Its unfair that this guy can get off scott free with this!!!


Asked on 7/22/11, 10:34 am

1 Answer from Attorneys
Rachel Hunter

Your parents are the homeowners and will have to pursue this. If your mother has left your father, perhaps she is willing to deed the home over to him? Although your father is blind and bedridden, is he mentally competent? IF so, he can give you a power of attorney to pursue to the insurance claim on his behalf. Maybe, if your mother will not sign, you can commence divorce proceedings on behalf of your father. You ask what good will that do? The answer is alot. As things stand now, if your father dies, your mother gets the house totally. If a divorce action is filed, your parents' property will be divided between your parents and if equitable distribution proceedings are started, these will have to proceed and your mother will only get half of the assets, not the whole thing.

I do not understand why you cannot file a claim against the home owner whose property caused the flood. If his insurance will not cover it, why can you not sue him? I don't know if it would be worthwhile or if he owns other stuff, but I would see a lawyer about that.

To recap - you need to see if your father is mentally competent to do a power of attorney. Once you get that, you need to talk with a lawyer specializing in property damage and personal injury types of claims to see about pursuing a claim against the home owner and/or the insurance company for your father. You may also want to talk to a family lawyer about a divorce action and equitable distribution.

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Answered on 7/22/11, 11:55 am


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