Hello,

My name is Claudette.

I rent a house with my two teenage children in Edmonton.

Last week my 16 year old son, Lennon, left the water running in the bathroom sink upstairs at 10 pm after I went to bed. The sink was clogged with goop that caused the sink to overflow. My daughter discovered it an hour later but the damage was already done.

There was an inch of water. It seeped through the walls and the floor

We called my landlord first thing the next morning and he called his insurance.

Insurance (TD bank) sent their contractors and they set up 8 industrial fans and 2 large dehumidifiers. That cost alone is $6,000.

The fans worked in the sense there will be no mold. The picture is the ceiling damage. There’s other damage like several baseboards that had to be removed. Wet carpet.

The bad news… the insurance company determined we were at fault so they won’t cover it. That means I am on the hook.

My landlord brought in “his guy” who quoted him a lot less to fix everything.

But it will still cost roughly $12,000.

I don’t have that kind of money.

As a single parent who has not received child support in 7 years I can barely afford life right now. The cost of food, utilities etc. I don’t even have a car. I commute to work on transit (1.5 hours one way).

I hope you can help.

thank you,

Claudette

EDIT: I do not have tenant liability insurance. I actually only have contents insurance. I did not even know liability insurance was a thing until this happened. If you do not have this liability insurance please use my shitty experience as a warning and get it now! I wish I had known this existed.

I also reached out to tenant support in Edmonton and yes this is legal and yes the landlord’s insurance has every right to go after me to recoup the cost. That’s why my landlord has kindly agreed to forego his claim. Instead, working on a payment plan with me. I don’t really have a choice here.