Ex boyfriend of Tenant smashed sliding glass door

[Newton Lim]

I have a tenant call and and said the weed wacker kicked up rocks and broke the glass to the  sliding patio door. I told her that is not normal wear and tear so you will be responsible for the repairs of the door. I suggested she file a claim with her renters insurance. 10 minutes later she calls and says she lied and that and her ex boyfriend who she has a no contact order against came over uninvited and kicked the door in. Her insurance will not cover the cost of the repairs. Am I responsible for the cost of the repairs or is the tenant. She said she does have a police report, but has failed to provide a copy yet.

[Jason Leavitt]

First, start documenting all conversations with your tenant since she hasn’t been truthful so far. Second, tell her you will need a copy of the police report to provide to your own insurance company if you end up making any claim with them. Third, ask your insurance agent for their thoughts on the situation as they may be able to help you determine who is responsible for the repairs. My guess though is that this may be a sort of gray area—could the damage be attributable to a “guest” of the tenant since he was only there because of her?  She may be able to dispute that because of the no contact order though. 

 In the end, you’ll probably end up either paying this yourself because it’s too small to bother making an insurance claim, or you will pay for the repairs and withhold it from her deposit and then she’ll have to choose either to come after you or the ex-boyfriend to recoup her costs, or just accept the charge.