Do I need to be legally protected?

[Bryan Cork]

Ok the scenario. Recently closed on an investment townhome with a nicely landscaped back patio.......a small but clean little trek deck and some nice pavers that created an attractive useable space. So then I get a call from an electrical contractor stating that the unit next door is having some issues with their power and they have located that the problem is under my deck, and they will need to remove boards, dig it up, and do a repair. However, a couple of small twists in the story make me nervous. One is that apparently the homeowners are responsible for the maintenance of the power line from from the transformer, so it’s not the association with deeper pockets who is on the hook, its the nieghbor . Second this electrical company has already fixed this issue in my yard a few years ago so this “might” be warranty work because their first splice may have gone bad. So, I have given them permission to do the work, and made it clear that I expect the patio to be made to look like it does now after the work is completed. But my nervousness kick in because of the company pays to remove the decking, digs up the splice, and determines that it’s a different problem and not warranty work, now it’s my neighbor who is on the hook, and responsible to pay the bill of repair, and responsible to get my patio put back together. This seems like it could go very wrong...... Should I get a contract written and signed by all parties to protect myself?

[John Underwood]

@Bryan Cork Could you get them to run a new line around your deck and abandon in place the faulty cable under your deck? This way they would not have to tear your deck up.