[scorch]

My About 2 months ago the ceiling below our bathroom partially came down - it took the landlady over a month to even get someone out to inspect this - the plumber came out and said that the caulking around the bath was bad and therefore water had been leaking behind and had caused the ceiling to collapse beneath it. Now the Landlady has given us the bill for the plumber saying that we need to re-caulk this area and keep the place clean!! IT ALWAYS is clean! Can you tell me IF this IS our responsibility to pay this bill or should the landlord be paying this as maintenance of the property?

[ScottGem]

Sounds like this is landlord maintenance. However, if she can get a plumber to state it was your fault the caulking deteriorated, then you would be liable.

[scorch]

She is trying to say that we did not clean the bath well enough and therefore she states that it is now our responsibility!

[ScottGem]

Well this will need an expert to testify whether it was your lack of maintenance or not. How long have you lived there?

[scorch]

We have been there since Nov 2004! Last year the ceiling in the bedroom leaked all over the bed and she never once made the claim to us! If there had been a flood I could understand this but there has not!

[ScottGem]

Well let me see last year you had a similar problem and I'm assuming she had it repaired. Now you have a recurrence of the same problem. No wonder she thinks its your fault.

[scorch]

Not really - last year she had the External Roof replaced - this time this is an Internal ceiling, but it makes me wonder that as the External roof was not repaired right the first time and therefore it leaked into the bedroom (we have the upstairs apartment) that there might have been leakage furthr down!

[ScottGem]

Could be. But the point is; if she bills you and you don't pay, then she will sue you. If she calls in the plumber who did the job and he says that it was die to improper maintenance of the tub, then you will likely lose.