Legal Issues Regarding Property Damage During Fire

[dps]

This issue is actually being taken to small claims court and not housing court, but I figured someone with legal insight might check this forum.

My two roommates and I moved into an apartment in Park Slope in September. Less than a week later there was a fire in our apartment and we lost a good deal of our possessions and also incurred other charges. The Brooklyn Fire Marshall determined it was a structural fire. The landlord collected insurance money. We wrote him and called him concerning our damaged property and money we spent on dry-cleaning, moving charges, etc. and he did not respond. We filed three separates cases in Brooklyn Small Claims Court (the total sought is around $7000).

I have talked to a few lawyers about our chances and they seemed confident that we would be reimbursed. Does anyone have any leads as to the legality of our claims?

[too trusting]

You should get reimbursed but isn't the cutoff for small claims $5000?

[too trusting]

Originally posted by me again:
if the ll didn't cause the fire, either by starting it, or by not doing something that did cause it (i.e., not removing a fire hazard or creating one), i can't see how he has any liability to replace your property. typically, an ll's insurance only covers the building, any possessions inside are not covered, so he wouldn't be reimbursed for your stuff. isn't that what renters' insurance is for?
not to say that the ll may not give you something to make you 'go away', but i doubt it.

Renter's insurance should cover it if they have it but being it was a structual fire they could sue the LL's insurance company for payment; that's what his insurance is for and they did talk to a lawyer so hopefully they're taking the right person to court.

[consigliere]

I tend to agree with "me again."
 
Unless the landlord was aware of a problem before the fire and did not take proper action to correct the problem, the landlord is responsible only for restoring the apartment and the public areas of the building.
 
The jurisdiction of small claims court in New York is still $3,000, although there has been talk of raising the limit to $5,000. In theory, three co-tenants could each sue the landlord for $3,000. There's no basis for the tenants to sue the landlord's insurance company, and I doubt that the small claims suits against the landlord will be successful.
 

[jot0n0]

The Brooklyn Fire Marshall determined it was a structural fire.

Pardon my ignorance on this, but what's the definition of a "structural fire"? More to the point, what exactly caused fire? :confused:

[dps]

Faulty wiring in the walls caused the fire.

Not, say, a drunken firecracker fight.

We are filing three separate claims, all under $3000. This may be besides the point, however, as we were just contacted by Judge Judy.

[too trusting]

Originally posted by dps:
Faulty wiring in the walls caused the fire.

Not, say, a drunken firecracker fight.

We are filing three separate claims, all under $3000. This may be besides the point, however, as we were just contacted by Judge Judy.

I had that happen the first time I sued a LL for my deposit. Of course they didn't want to do it on tv. We won anyway. Do it if you can, make sure you have the report saying it was faulty wiring and then do some research to find out if LL knew there was a problem. Check dept. of buildings website www.nyc.gov/buildings, you can search by address there. What you'll need is some proof of negligence.