Legal Question in Insurance Law in California

Re: Fire Damage to Rental Property...

It's hard to say from your presentation of the facts, but it sounds like somebody else's insurance paid off and thinks you were negligent in allowing the fire to start. When an insurer pays off a claim to a policyholder, it becomes "subrogated", which basicallly mean it inherits it's policyholder's claim. Basically, the insurance company thinks they can cut their losses by pinning the liability on you and your insurer. You should contact your carrier. Under your homeowners policy, they are probably obligated to defend you against suits. You may want to call a tort lawyer first, but there is a good chance your homeowner's carrier will pay for that.

Re: Fire Damage to Rental Property...

I think Mr. Wisong has misunderstood your question, though in his defense your question isn't written as clearly as it could have been. He suggests turning the matter over to your homeowner's insurance company, but your question says you have a landlord and that means you are not the owner. If you have renter's insurance, that policy might offer similar coverage to what Mr. Wisong describes.

You ask why you should "pay for something that was deemed an accident", which suggests you think you should only have to pay for things you do intentionally. This is not how the law works. If you have an accident because of your negligence, then you are responsible for the reasonably foreseeable consequences. You might well be considered negligent for running a faulty drier -- especially if you caused a second fire by running it after you knew it had caused the first fire. Alternatively, your rental contract might state that you are responsible for any damage you cause even without negligence.

Insurance companies file suits like this all the time. Many people believe that an insurance company is done with a loss after it writes a check to the insured, but that is not so. The insurer is usually allowed to file any kind of lawsuit which the insured could have filed on his own (this is called subrogation) to recover for the loss, and that is what is happening here. The insurer does have to pay benefits to the insured, but it does *not* have to simply absorb the loss if it can recoup its money from another party.

You should seek out a lawyer in your area for a one-on-one consultation.

Re: Fire Damage to Rental Property...

Thanks to Mr. Hoffman for pointing out my oversight re tenant v owner. Since you are a renter, you would need renters insurance, not homeowners insurance, to have shelter here. If not, you could be "going bare".