Sewer line clog in duplex - who’s responsible?

[Marc Izquierdo]

Hi all,

Recently one of our tenants called and said that the sewer was clogged. Long story short, we had our plumber go in and it turns out there were “female products” in there. The clog was in the main sewer line after all of the drain lines from both units combined so I’m unable to definitively say which tenant is responsible. The upstairs tenants are older and his wife is rarely ever home. I doubt it was them. The downstairs tenants are a group of younger guys so I could see them having a girlfriend over or something like that. I suspect it was the downstairs tenants but I can’t be certain. I’ve asked them about it and no one knows anything. Does anyone have any advice on how to handle something like this? I’m feeling like I have to just eat this cost but of course I think about what if it happens again and again? 

Any help would be appreciated! Thanks in advance.

[Gregory Schwartz]

Hey Marc, I had a similar issue with an apartment complex I managed. The main sewer line was clogged with 'non-flushable items'. I divided the charge among the 20 residents and added it to their bill as a tenant-billed maintenance charge. Our policy is the same for duplexes, fourplexes or apartments. If it was tenant caused problem then the charge is billed to the tenants. Its not our most popular policy but it usually gets the point across.