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Original poster

Tenant accidentally set kitchen on fire, advice needed!

68 replies

MariaDingbat · 14/01/2021 07:31

My tenant put the oven on to preheat and took the dog for a walk. Unfortunately she accidentally turned the hob on too and came back to the kitchen on fire and the toaster exploding. She called the fire brigade and they were thee in minutes and put it out but had to use the hose. So there's water damage, the extractor fan is melted and there's smoke damage in the kitchen and living room. Frustratingly I had only replaced the 20 year old kitchen last Feb so the kitchen was less than a year old!

Any ideas how this works with insurance? Should I be expecting a huge bill to fix the kitchen and will it increase my insurance premiums?

OP posts:

ScaredOfDinosaurs · 14/01/2021 10:50

Another thought - I assume she'll want to come back to see what she can salvage and pick up some personal items. From a safety point of view, you should ensure she is escorted to collect her belongings, as any accident or injury whilst she is on the property is still your liability. In truth, I would consider a change of the locks to ensure no unsupervised access until the property has been confirmed safe to enter - but get advice on this.

Viviennemary · 14/01/2021 10:54

Who switches an oven and hob on and goes for a walk. Thus rendering the smoke alarms ineffective. Perhaps you need to think about calling the police on this one. Dont know if I would swallow that story now I think about it.

Whatisthisfuckery · 14/01/2021 11:12

Perhaps some posters need to realise, that while they themselves may be perfect, others aren’t, and people do make mistakes, even if they are above such things.

OP it’s shit that your rental property kitchen has been on fire, that must be an absolute pain to have to deal with. I imagine it was very frightening for your tenant and that now not only is her life disrupted because of a mistake, she’s feeling stupid and guilty and she’s worried sick about being evicted.

As we are so often reminded on here, renting out property is a business, so dealing with this is just a job, admin, another ball ache at work. I’m sure the insurers will also do their job and instruct you going forward.

ScaredOfDinosaurs · 14/01/2021 11:15

@Viviennemary I think you've got a good point. At best, the story is true and the tenant is culpable. At worst, god only knows what went on! I'm not sure if it would meet a legal threshold for police involvement though.

This is why I suggested that OP speak with Landlord Action (eviction specialists) or the Landlord's Association - they will be able to advise on the most effective strategy. A Section 8 notice under Ground 13 - damage or neglect to Landlord's property would definitely apply. She can also serve S21 (no-fault) and S8 (at fault) notices in parallel.

Hopefully, the insurance will assist her with legal advice!

torquewench · 14/01/2021 11:20

OP, have you tried asking your insurer the questions in your opening post?

Maves · 14/01/2021 11:23

Why are some people having a go it was the remnants fault! She shouldn't have left the oven on and ducked off out and how do you accident it turn a hob on? That's hard to do let alone adding a toaster into the mix. Strange sorry no help with insurance but I wouldn't have her back. Not that I have a house to rent mind

ginghamstarfish · 14/01/2021 11:24

I agree that in your place I wouldn't want this tenant back. Sounds a bit stupid and very irresponsible. Who turns stuff on and then leaves the house/leaves combustible items on or right next to the hob? In future I would make sure that tenants have their own contents insurance, and if legally possible, include in the contract that electrical appliances such as oven not be left on when the property is vacant.

Reedwarbler · 14/01/2021 11:40

I want to know why autocorrect thinks a tenant is a remnant!

murbblurb · 14/01/2021 12:16

This is what insurance is for. Not for the tenant's belongings, no-one can insure what they don't own so she will have to make her own arrangements for that.

if you have decent insurance it should cover emergency accommodation while the property is uninhabitable. You are in for a great deal of hassle but that's the business, sorry.

Not sure why the reaction is to evict the tenant! Any kind of eviction notice is a waste of time at the moment. Six months notice on a section 21 before you can even start proceedings. Massive court backlog, even the real rogues won't see the bailiffs until mid 2022 if you were to start now.

CodenameVillanelle · 14/01/2021 12:30

@MedusaElectronica

CodenameVillanelle

It's in the very first line of the OP:

My tenant put the oven on to preheat and took the dog for a walk. Unfortunately she accidentally turned the hob on too and came back to the kitchen on fire

Somehow it is the hob that has caused the fire, not the oven. She may have left a tea towel on or near it, a plastic colander, if it is a gas hob something, including the toaster, left very close

PP said she put the toaster on top of the hob. I didn't dispute that she turned the hob on, only that she put the toaster on top of it

CodenameVillanelle · 14/01/2021 12:31

@Maves

She can't just not have her back. She has a legal process to follow.

TobyCarvery · 14/01/2021 12:37

I would tread very carefully when sifting through some of the comments on here from supposed Landlords OP. Half of what ScaredofDinosaurs has said is not legal. You cannot change the locks to prevent her from entering! You also can't just evict her. There are laws for a reason!

WombatChocolate · 14/01/2021 12:42

This is the equivalent to an employee at work causing a fire.
The owner of the business should be insured and will have to get it sorted, regardless of who was to blame etc.

It doesn’t matter that the tenant caused it....it is still the LLs property and business and she will have to sort it out. It will be her insurance that covers the kitchen and other damage. LL insurance also usually covers for re-housing a tenant. If the tenant is rehoused, they will continue to pay rent.

Yes, it’s incredibly annoying that the tenant did this... but it’s one of those things like other damage, which might be accidental or caused in other ways...it’s part of being a LL. if you’re not prepared to deal with these this and face the inconvenience and financial consequences (possible costs and impact on insurance premiums) then you’re not cut out to be a LL.

You’d get better answers to this on a LL forum where people understand the responsibilities of LLs and know what they’re talking about, rather than people deciding (wrongly) that the person who caused the incident must pay and be homeless.

RainingBatsAndFrogs · 14/01/2021 12:53

There was a poster recently whose DH left a candle burning on the bed while he went to the bathroom and caused a fire...so I don't think this tenant comes bottom in the fire safety league!

Viviennemary LOL, what on earth are you suggesting happened? The tenant committed arson but explained it as an accident?

PresentingPercy · 14/01/2021 18:37

My thought process was how can a fuss fee catch fire just because an oven and hob are turned on. The toaster must have been near the heat to catch on fire one would have thought.

I agree that a professional landlord forum is the best place to ask and I assume the op has a deposit. I’m not sure I would want this tenant back either and they might come to an agreement about her leaving. The tenant was negligent but it’s a very difficult situation for the op. She will be out of pocket with the insurance excess and you would wonder if this tenant is safe in the future. It seems too easy to be stupid and nothing happens.

PresentingPercy · 14/01/2021 18:38

???? Toaster catch fire....

ivfbeenbusy · 14/01/2021 18:45

No idea how she has managed to turn the overnight AND the job on???

Anyway I'd be passing the excess and the increase in premiums on to the tenant for their negligence

DobbyTheHouseElk · 14/01/2021 18:51

Autocorrect is having a field day here! It’s crazy.

RainingBatsAndFrogs · 14/01/2021 18:53

I don't know how she managed to turn the hob on as well as the oven if she didn't mean to, but once the hob was on, anything close enough or on the cooker top could have caught fire - bit of kitchen roll, tea towel, dry dishcloth, the handle of a wooden spatula in a pan overhanging the flame...and then it spreads. Tea towel on the worktop with one corner carelessly trailing on to the hob...box of matches next to the tea towel, toaster next to that, and the fire by that time is going up the walls...curtains...

lalafafa · 14/01/2021 19:05

@DecemberSun

You are not liable for your tenant's belongings, she should have her own insurance for personal possessions. That's what our insurance company told us in similar circs.

Not sure why people are saying it's your job to find her somewhere else to live. She created the mess, she can look for herself.

I would be furious, what an idiot.

Original poster

MariaDingbat · 14/01/2021 22:18

Right, quite a busy day but I have a quick update. I spoke with my broker in the morning, who put me through to their claim handler branch who told me I had to get all the repair quotes myself, pay for reports myself and then send everything in with photos to the claim handlers to get payment! They had no information on what I was entitled to in my policy and couldn't answer any questions so I just went straight to insurer directly (should have just done that in the first place but I was following the brokers guidance) and they had a claim assessor out this afternoon. He is preparing a report and will instruct a contractor to carry out all the work at no cost to me other than the excess and a potential increase in the policy cost.

Despite there only being fire damage to the extractor, hob and the adjacent cupboard, because of the extensive smoke damage he has advised the whole kitchen and all the white goods and appliances be replaced, the kitchen rewired, the ceilings in the kitchen and dining room be replaced and the entire house be cleaned and redecorated. He was very good with the tenant and went through her claim process as she will have to claim to get all her furniture removed, cleaned and stored for the duration of the works, which may take a month to complete (I advised her when she moved in that she needed her own contents insurance). She can't live in the house while the work is ongoing so she has decided to stay with her partner so there's no cost incurred there.

I know there was advice to evict her and I would usually agree but she's been in the property 14 years and this is the first time something like this has happened. She's been a model tenant, so I'm giving her the benefit of the doubt and retaining her as a tenant. She is really upset that she caused damage to the house, which is essentially her home not just a rental property to her. I'm still not entirely sure how the fire started, I'm not sure the tenant is either, but the report may shed more light on it.

OP posts:

Original poster

MariaDingbat · 14/01/2021 22:26

@MedusaElectronica

OP: smoke from a fire that is very hot travels fast and under force as it is pushed by the heat / expanding air. So it can push into your computer, the back of the TV etc, and leave carbon particles which then present a further fire risk.

Also the smoke is likely to have been nasty and left a horrible residue on everything - the insurance co should provide specialist cleaners.

We had a bad fire at work and we weren't allowed in until the cleaning had been done.

Really sorry you have this to deal with.

Again, thank you and you're spot on. The claim assessor has advised the tenant that her tv will need replaced due to the particles and that everything will need to be cleaned by specialist cleaners. Thankfully my insurance company will handle all of that, I wouldn't know where to start!

OP posts:

Original poster

MariaDingbat · 14/01/2021 22:36

I agree with the posters saying this is just one of those things, an unfortunate accident. The tenant is very sorry and upset with herself. I'd just put the kitchen in last Feb and she helped design it and was delighted with it.

I'm happy there was no injuries involved, it could have been so much worse and she did well to call the fire brigade and get them there so quickly so the rest of the house was saved from worse damage or from spreading to the adjacent house. At the end of the day it's just stuff and the insurance is in place for exactly this type of thing.

OP posts:

PresentingPercy · 14/01/2021 22:51

I think you have actually had decent service from your insurance company. I can see why you might want to keep a long standing tenant and hopefully she will be careful in future. I have to say 1 month is a very rosy view of thx timescale but she has somewhere to stay. This is stressful for everyone so kept sane when the work starts! Good luck.

Lineofconcepcion · 14/01/2021 22:55

What a lovely kind landlord.

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