This is regarding an apartment in California. My girlfriend (not a tenant) came into my apartment and started a fire by overheating oil in a pot. A roommate poured water on the oil-fire (yes he knows now not to do that), which caused it to "explode" into a fireball and it triggered the water sprinklers in the apartment. The water sprinklers ended up putting out so much water that it flooded a lot of our apartment, and it spread to the apartment below us. The majority of damage is due to the water, essentially nothing was burned by the fire. The only fire damage is due to the slight charring of the surrounding cabinets from the fireball. The landlord is asking us to pay for it and has sent an invoice asking for ~$14,000 paying for labor/services/new equipment (stove, etc.), and is threatening collections on the tenants if we do not pay.
What concerns me is that it seems like the landlord is trying to do this without going through insurance, touting that it would be more expensive to do so. Also, the general impression I get from the landlord office is that they are giving us a break, by somehow reducing the fees.. I don't know what to believe.
Do I have a chance to fight this back with lawyers? What should I do? My girlfriend is not liable for any of the damages according to the lease, and I don't wish to take any action against her. Any advice at all is appreciated, thanks for reading!
What concerns me is that it seems like the landlord is trying to do this without going through insurance, touting that it would be more expensive to do so. Also, the general impression I get from the landlord office is that they are giving us a break, by somehow reducing the fees.. I don't know what to believe.
Do I have a chance to fight this back with lawyers? What should I do? My girlfriend is not liable for any of the damages according to the lease, and I don't wish to take any action against her. Any advice at all is appreciated, thanks for reading!
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