Has anyone been sued for mold or know of anyone?

Question

I have paid for mold remediation multiple times in a house I am renting in Texas.

I have another rental in Arkansas love the house never have many issues with the house.  I think either my tenant was a concerned parent or trying to pull a fast one.  He told me his son was continually getting sick and wanted to rule out mold.  I paid for the mold test and everything came up negative.

I may pay for an overall mold test for the house in Texas just to be extra cautious.

Curious if anyone knows of anyone or has been sued for mold by a tenant or knows of anyone that has been sued for mold?

I called my insurance and they said they do not cover damages from mold.

Danny Webber · Answer

If you pay for an airborne test just assume you will fail it. Most homes will not pass via the standards in place right now which are subjective. There are no "fixed" in stone- law type guidelines in the country that i know of. If there are someone please post a link.

If you fail the airborne test assume "Sh_ t is going to get much worse before it gets better."

Fail test= remediation=lots of money=more tests

My humble opinion is that since the mold remediation industry is so unregulated a lot of people get taken advantage of. Those companies charge outrageous amounts of money to do work and use the fear of death and lawsuits to sell jobs.

We all admit that mold is bad if at certain levels. One test guy told me that every house on the block would fail an airborne test if tested enough or in certain areas. That is based on his adopted standards which may be universal or may not be. Either way it shed light on the industry.

I've had personal experience with tests/remediators/etc... None of which unfortunately were positive in the Austin area. I just could not get anyone to agree with anyone else on results/remediation, etc.. Very frustrating.

Seek legal counsel is my first suggestion.

Second suggestion- walk the house looking for anything that looks like mold and spot clean/treat it, etc. You could also hire an inspector to do swab tests around the house. Just be ready to get it cleaned after and pay for a follow up test to clear the place.

Summary: if mold is a problem in a house for you or tenants it should be treated but tenants IMO are sometimes crazy and looking for leverage to short you on rents or sec deposits. It is hard to know the difference.

I AM SURE someone in the mold business is on this forum and will "roast" everyone about their suggestions!

Disclaimer:  i am not a mold expert or professional

good article

https://www.thespruce.com/is-mold-remediation-wort...

Michael Badin · Answer

You said your insurance company said mold is not covered. That just means your current policy does not cover mold. Call them back and have a mold endorsement added to your policy. However, this mold endorsement will only cover mold caused by a "covered peril". It will likely have it's own sub-limit, usually only around $2,500 - $5,000 so make sure you know what you have.

Ray Fisher · Answer

A little off subject. I was sued for a business that we were closing down.  Was not under the protection of an llc, insurance policy's had been cancelled. Personal Injury suit.  everything I owned was up for grabs.  The only thing they didn't go after was the real estate partnership llc. This is a learning experience.  When I asked my lawyers about asset protection, I was told I don't know what you could do. I went to another town hired another lawyer for personal reasons. will's, divorce papers just in case, (Half of everything is hers, she wasn't getting sued.)  He gave me a lot of advise of what to do.  The first thing he told me was "You don't need to do anything that you don't have the llc or corporation for a veil of protection."  Today  I have three different llc,s  for real estate, all sfr. so if I get sued the holdings of that particular llc is what's at stake here. Today I only own my house and 1 auto in my name . (that's what they leave you with). Everything else is in some sort of asset protection.

The upside of this is I paid 25K in legal fees for a very good education. and if you run my credit report none of these loans show up.

Another note, I went to my local community banker. He also helped me with tying up assets . with lines of credit that clouded titles.

It was 5 years of a nightmare, because I didn't start a llc when we started business.  (that's $50 where I live  and $150 annually.)  CHEAP INSURANCE!

Marcia Maynard · Answer

Mold exists in a lot of places... even on edible cheese!  What you need to be most concerned about are mold "hazards". Mold that can cause serious health problems.

Download or order the booklet from the EPA titled "A Brief Guide to Mold, Moisture, and Your Home." It's a practical booklet that we give all of our tenants. We ask our tenants to do their part in keeping their home clean and safe.

Do what you can to prevent mold from taking root and becoming a hazard. The "M" word often draws fear, but is only bad if it becomes destructive to one's property or hazardous to one's health.

Aaron W. · Answer

Not trying to keep this thread alive much longer but I am in Texas and maybe someone can chime in.  I would think with Texas property code if there is thought to be mold then I would at least have a chance to do remediation prior to being sued.

The below was taken from me reading online a lot about this particular subject.

The Texas Property Code states that landlords are obligated to fix anything that threatens the health or safety of a tenant, and mold would certainly qualify. Unfortunately, you do have to give them a chance to fix it.

Pat L. · Answer

Happened here to our favorite RE agent. Place was remediated & tested, then sold but the new owners insist RE Agent didn't disclose remediation etc etc. Yet they had lived in a non-remediated home for 5 years prior but daughter 'only' tested positive for lead after the move. Yet no prior testing presented. Agents attorney talked her into pleading guilty to avoid $100+k in costs but it did cost her $75k plus a conviction. Lawsuit against previous owners who remediated the home, the remediation company & the agents old RE Brokerage is ongoing.

After all this the buyers apparently bought new cars with the settlement & stayed in this same home???

Michael Jones · Answer

Do you have insurance to cover such a lawsuit? If not, I would get it now.

A landlord is most liable to a law suit if there is neglect. An example of neglect would be a tenant informing the landlord in writing that they have mold or a water leak that could cause mold and the landlord doing nothing to repair the leak or check/remove the mold.

Then as time goes by a child or tenant gets sick and it gets in the hands of a lawyer. They will frame it as neglect on the part of the landlord.

If the tenant comes to the landlord with a mold concern and it is addressed/repaired/removed the chance of a lawsuit is greatly reduced because there is no neglect on the part of an owner/landlord.

Has anyone been sued for mold or know of anyone?

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