Neighbours House Burnt down and Damaged My Fence

Pinchy on 07/12/2017 - 18:48
Last edited 15/12/2017 - 19:13

So my neighbours house burnt down the other week. The fence is partially destroyed because of it.
I was wondering if anyone knows the course of action to get it repaired? Are they liable for the damages?
Im not sure who the owner of the house is. I am unaware on how to find out those details.

Sadly a man died as well so it makes it even more difficult to know what to do, let alone speaking to the family or the owners of the house about it.
I own a dog and I cant have him getting out from the yard.

Any advice from anyone would be much appreciated.

Edit: Thanks everyone for the responses. I think I will contact the owners of the house in due time.

Home & Garden

Comments

  • onetwothreefour on 07/12/2017 - 18:50
    +1

    Contact the police who attended the fire?

  • robbyjones on 07/12/2017 - 18:51
    +3

    Ring your council, they should be able to advise you

  • whooah1979 on 07/12/2017 - 18:57
    +3

    The fence is partially destroyed because of it.

    Tell anyone that asks that the part of the fence that isn't damaged is yours. Insurance or the other owner will rebuild the damaged side.

  • EightImmortals on 07/12/2017 - 19:00
    +2

    https://www.ozbargain.com.au/node/347990

    Too late? (or too soon?)

    • aoeueoa on 07/12/2017 - 19:04
      +9

      These won't make a very good fence.

  • Ocker on 07/12/2017 - 19:09
    +2

    Insurance job (for the fence, not the poor chap that passed away)

  • pennypincher98 on 07/12/2017 - 19:20
    +2

    It's not your fence, it's the sadly deceased man's fence.
    I know that might seem a bit unfeeling, but if you say its your fence to a insurance company, you'll pay regardless of what happened (and/or your premiums will increase).

    • robbyjones on 07/12/2017 - 20:17
      +3

      I am not sure this is correct. If it is a boundary fence then both own it. If it is damaged and you can name the guilty party then they should pay. The issue here is the owner/occupant died. OP if you have home insurance, try your own insurance, they may be able to guide you on the process.

      • pennypincher98 on 08/12/2017 - 07:53
        +1

        Ok, it is true that you both do own it. The issue is that the owner at fault died. They aren't just going to say we'll make the deceased man pay for it. They're going to make you pay. Note the excess and all that nonsense that they put on as well. Is it worth claiming insurance on the fence? I think mine from memory has a $250 excess - as in you need to pay the first $250 yeah?

        • Kangal on 08/12/2017 - 08:13
          +1

          Not if the deceased was renting…

        • pennypincher98 on 08/12/2017 - 08:14
          +1

          @Kangal: True, I didn't think of that.

          family or the owners of the house

          That right there is what I missed the first time around.

        • whooah1979 on 08/12/2017 - 09:13
          +2

          They aren't just going to say we'll make the deceased man pay for it.

          The deceased can't pay, but their estate could be held reasonable. It's with in op's rights to file a claim against the deceased estate for damages.

        • pennypincher98 on 08/12/2017 - 09:18
          +1

          @whooah1979: This depends on a number of things.
          a) Who's the deceased estate?
          b) How much is that portion of the fence worth?
          c) How long will that take?

          it is my understanding that OP wants a solution as soon as they can, as they have a dog that they don't want getting out of the yard.

        • Pinchy on 15/12/2017 - 19:13

          @whooah1979: Cheers

  • try2bhelpful on 07/12/2017 - 19:33
    +7

    Go talk to your insurance company and ask them what is the best way forward.

    • TheBilly on 08/12/2017 - 06:36
      +1

      This - best way forward. It might just be like cars where they say, give is the details and we will handle it.

    • Pinchy on 15/12/2017 - 19:12

      I dont have insurance.

      • try2bhelpful on 16/12/2017 - 13:02

        Get house insurance it is your single biggest asset and you should insure it.

  • bobbified on 07/12/2017 - 21:24
    +5

    That's sad. It's such a horrible way to go.

    Is putting up a temporary fence a option for now to stop your dog from running out?

    There's no way I'd be able to bring myself to ask the neighbor's family to cough up any money to fix the fence.

    If there's really no insurance on either side, then it'll be tough one.

  • AdosHouse on 07/12/2017 - 21:25
    +9

    Honestly mate, is it only one side damaged? Is it going to be expensive to fix? I'd probably just look at fixing it myself unless its a really expensive fence.

  • brokenglish on 07/12/2017 - 21:28
    +6

    I am more interested in your calmness writing this forum post when your neighbour's house burnt down…
    Is it exactly your next door neighbour? Were you present during the fire? How big was the fire? Did you feel the heat from the fire? Were you worried at all about your house?!
    …

    • Pinchy on 15/12/2017 - 19:09

      It burnt down a couple weeks before that post.
      The neighbours driveway leads onto a different street so no he isn't exactly my neighbour. His house backs onto my backyard fence though.
      I woke up to it as it happened late in the night. My house was well away from the fire but the trees in my backyard caught alight (and the fence). The neighbours and I all had our hoses out trying to stop it from spreading until the fire brigade came.

  • smpantsonfire on 07/12/2017 - 23:35
    +1

    Just build a new fence and move on.

    • Baysew on 08/12/2017 - 09:51
      +2

      …and get Mexico to pay for it?

      • teasatotalling on 08/12/2017 - 13:33
        +1

        and people are actually dumb enough to believe it….!!

        • whooah1979 on 08/12/2017 - 14:38

          It's easy enough to get México to pay for it. Just put a tariffs on anything that's made there.

        • teasatotalling on 08/12/2017 - 15:41
          +1

          @whooah1979: which they’ll just do tit for tat to recoup

        • HighAndDry on 08/12/2017 - 16:12
          +1

          @yoyomablue: Except Mexico exports far more to the USA than the other way around.

        • teasatotalling on 08/12/2017 - 16:15
          +1

          @0blivion: and Mexico can easily put enough tit for tat tariff to cover the $25B tariff cost from the US
          Consumers may also backlash when prices go up & producers backlash when they lose substantial export business.

      • Euphemistic on 08/12/2017 - 15:54
        +1

        getting Mexico to pay won't work unless it's on the southern border.

        • teasatotalling on 08/12/2017 - 16:17
          +1

          Looking forward to the wall becoming a dam for the Rio Grande….

    • Pinchy on 15/12/2017 - 19:11

      Expensive.

  • whooah1979 on 08/12/2017 - 06:50
    +1

    Get temp fences from bunnings and ask the family to chip in.

  • Euphemistic on 08/12/2017 - 08:01
    +1

    Get something temporary until the insurance is sorted out. Give it a couple of weeks at least before contacting the property owner. Worst case, just rebuild/repair the fence yourself, depending on the damage and type of fence it might not cost that much and make life easier for the owner or relatives of the deceased.

    • HighAndDry on 08/12/2017 - 12:22
      +1

      On the one hand, yes someone died and OP is going "but my (half of the) fence!"

      On the other hand, fences are expensive and keeping a dog cooped up in the house for even a week is bordering on cruel.

      Honestly, easiest is just for OP to contact his insurance and let them handle it without letting feeling get in the way.

  • pjetson on 08/12/2017 - 08:50
    +1

    Your building insurance would normally cover the fence, so talk to your insurer about what you should do next.

    • Pinchy on 15/12/2017 - 19:14

      I don't have an insurer. I don't believe in insurance.

      • Euphemistic on 15/12/2017 - 21:02

        So you can afford to pay for your house and contents if your house burns down? I can understand not having excessive insurance, but not believing in any? That’s a shock.

  • hoey888 on 08/12/2017 - 09:27
    +2

    Speaking from industry, if the house has been burnt down and house was insured at the time; the insurer will generally arrange a few to 'make safe/board up' property. This involves fencing the area off so nobody comes in and covering all entry points (doors/windows/openings). This is intended to reduce their liability if anybody enters the property and gets injured.

    If you the police officer/fire brigade that attended its likely this would have been organised already.

    • Pinchy on 15/12/2017 - 19:10

      Fire investigation and Police came, including giving them a statement. No temporary fence was out up. And still there isnt one.

Login or Join to leave a comment
Login Join