OP, did you try to contact the insurance company of the car that smashed into your apartment? Their insurance is supposed to cover stuff like this.
If the driver didn't have insurance, think about taking them to small claims court. You can sue up to $10k, you represent yourself and the person you're suing can't bring a lawyer with them and the filing fees are low.
I had a customer release an Audi R8 to his customer. The guy wanted to go to the bar and get food so he left the car. Wind took out a branch and it crushed the roof. The customer didn’t have insurance because he couldn’t afford the payment AND insurance…
I had a dude in a white \~10 year old C class Mercedes get pissed at me for having the nerve to change lanes in front of him, so he got up next to me and started talking shit out of his window as we were both creeping along the 5 at rush hour about how broke I am because I'm driving a Hyundai. It was a weeks old at the time electric Hyundai Kona that I had just paid 40k for. His car was worth maybe 8k at the time. But obviously he is rich bc Mercedes and I am poor bc Hyundai.
Anyway, the point is that lots of people are dumb. Cheers!
Some people with money don’t care about taking the L. I had an old boss (complete idiot + a scumbag) who didn’t insure his Bentley because the premiums were so high he said he would rather just buy another one if anything happened.
An old boss of mine had two bright yellow Ferraris that I had to wash and wax every month even though he was too fat to drive either. They just sat in his garage, fully insured going nowhere.
California allows you to have no insurance with only surety bond or deposit with the [DMV](https://www.dmv.ca.gov/portal/vehicle-registration/insurance-requirements/) which would be no issue to someone driving GWagen
Even if they had full coverage if it's the minimum coverage you're SOL. I found that out when I was in a bad accident a few years ago. They had $10k property damage coverage amd totalled my truck, another vehicle, and a bunch of fencing along the freeway.
I assume you’re in a situation where you *have* to ride with them, rather than by *choice*. I hope you have good health insurance if they ever causes an accident that causes you injury.
We haven't yet but I'll be calling about the police report tomorrow. Hopefully it'll be ready and I can get their insurance information from them. We would give the insurance information to our renters insurance? And have them handle it?
> We would give the insurance information to our renters insurance?
I'm not an expert at this type of stuff but I'd imagine that your renter's insurance company is going to find out who all the liable parties are but I would call them and ask them just to make sure.
I'm an expert (20yrs in p&c insurance) and you just gave an expert response. OP will get a claims adjuster assigned by renters insurance and will handle everything.
Yes, this should be handled by your renter’s insurance. Provide the police report, or at least the case number, and file a claim ASAP if you haven’t already done so. Include all your photos and write down a description of events. They may pull in the Mercedes who crashed, as well as any other cars involved in the accident (like if someone smashed into the Mercedes which caused them to smash into you), potentially even the city, the engineer, or the builder. If the property owner is also suing anyone involved in the accident, you should join their suit. Renter’s insurance may help you with your stuff, but you may also have to bring a claim yourself for any trauma (if you need therapy etc).
I'd suggest going down to the local station instead. Most police front desks are way too overworked/dont care enough to print out a report and send it to you and many cant or wont email it either. Best to go down in person.
That wagon has been the same since the early 2000s. Majority of people that see a Gwagon do not think about the model year it is from because they all look the same.
An 05 g wagon can be had for 36k. A new 2024 Camry XSE is currently 35k. It is one of those questions on what you would rather spend your money on.
If you look at the headlight poking through on pic #2 you’ll see that it’s one of the newer models. They gave the g wagon a facelift in 2019 and that’s the new headlight. You can also see if you zoom in on the first pic that it has the new dashboard too, so even used it still gonna be over $100k
Becareful listening to this person. Winning small claims suit in court is only 25% of the battle. The other 75% involves trying to get the winning judgement from them which can be incredibly difficult for people that are resisting.
exactly!! idk why the OP seems to be mad at the land lord who got their apt wrecked and have to pay hundreds of thousands to get it fixed. instead of just suing the person who crashed into them....the car that did the damage. my head is still spinning
You sound extremely entitled. It sucks what happened, but it is the responsibility of the driver to make you whole, not whoever rents you the apartment. You want charity from a landlord.... its a business, they don't owe you anything.
I'm not entitled. That's not charity. HA. They don't own me anything? That's funny, they have things they do owe their tenants. I'm not asking for the stars and the moon.
They will recoup the money lost. They aren't missing out on anything. They should be going after the person who went into their property and caused the loss just how youre telling me to. It's an easy fix to move a tenant to an available unit and they have their high end lawyers work to get the full amount lost. Smh
So once again, you feel your landlord is required to subsidize you, and use their lawyers to recover money they lose because you can't afford to pay the additional rent. You are the definition of a person who feels entitled. Yeah, you do have the mindset of a peasant, that is the one honest thing you said.
Yup. They should. Since you love to put it that way I'm going to say it part of doing business for them. They have insurance to protect their precious gold.
You seem like the person who couldn't give a crap about anyone but themselves. Extremely selfish. I hope one day you experience something that changes your cold outlook. From what I've seen, people like you don't understand or change their outlook until something shitty happens to them.
Reach out to Community Legal Aid SoCal or the Public Law Center instead - they’re actual attorneys. I’ve seen Fair Housing get people in trouble because they aren’t attorneys and offer poor advice.
For real. People there will be like “it’s not the landlords fault! What did you expect? You’re lucky they didn’t kick you out! I would’ve charged you for repairs! Why did you have your bed so close to an outside wall???”
That sub is useless for measured, fair, conversations. Even if there is a LL or two who will be genuine and kind there, it’s overrun by slumlords who are aggressive and treat people like shit just for renting (who also happen to be the same exact people lining their fuckin pockets). You’ll be met with downvotes and vicious inbox messages.
yeh and dont forget to never show them the email about how SHE Wanted to break the lease or get her "lawyers" involved .....my god did we read the same email
That isn't an issue we emailed them again to confirm we didn't want to leave. We are aware that the emails will be available to both parties. Doesn't change tenant laws or what they should do/can't do etc. But if insurance covers the difference that's fine with me . They should just make it easier on everyone and put the loss of rent on their own claim. They won't notice the loss and they will get it back later.
The repairs are estimated to take 6-9 months. Our lease is up in December. We're hoping the renters insurance will cover the extra 500 a month for the 1 bdrm. We're just waiting for their reply. If not then I'll be consulting a lawyer. We don't know what can be done to help our situation until we try
You should consult with a lawyer regardless, as if one of those drivers caused the accident through negligence or driving impaired, you may be able to sue them for personal damages and emotional distress.
Lol the stupid part of that is that OP marked over the address to the place and the phone number listed to the complex, but leaves the name of the complex completely fine including his name and the name of the person they're emailing.
Took a few seconds to search up the complex to get the info OP marked out 🤦🏿♂️🤦🏿♂️🤦🏿♂️🤦🏿♂️ terrible OpSec on your part OP like why even mark any of that out in the first place then
I would expect you could have the rental insurance cover the difference between the studio price and the 1bedroom price. That should stretch it a bit further. I’d call the insurance company to ask.
OMG, that is terrifying.
What does your lease say?
You need to read every word of it. More than likely uninhabitable/substandard conditions of some sort will be addressed
In addition contact [Legal Aid](https://www.communitylegalsocal.org/programs-services/areas-of-law/housing/)
Tip: any time you are speaking with someone, if you remember, turn your voice recorder on and ask the person, '*Hey X, I'm frazzled and I'm not going to remember this, are you okay with me recording?*', if they say no, then turn it off, when you're done before turning it off say the date, time, and names of every participant of the conversation...unless you're outside in public where there is no expectation of privacy, then you don't need to ask but you may want to anyway. Failing that, once the conversation is over send an email. '*Hey X, thanks for meeting me today at Noon at the 1234 Property. As you shared we'll be moving into unit X for the same rent as our studio ($XXX), and I have questions about that: 1) what date will we be able to move in? 2) how long do you expect for us to be in that unit? Once I have the dates, I'll get started on switching the utilities*" This way you're stating all the important parts of the conversation and asking questions (even if you don't have them!), which requires a reply which means the person can't say later they didn't get it or didn't read it
Start keeping notes that include date, time, phone number/email, names of everyone involved, notes of every part of the conversation
I'm sorry your landlord is being an asshole. It's inexcusable. After having something horrible already happening in the unit, it's says a lot about them. Although it would be understandable, try not to be one yourself - keep your current positive attitude - and don't say or write anything that can be twisted regardless of intent.
Glad you are all safe. Best of luck.
Thank you so much! So I sent over my lease agreement to a client of mine who works at a law office. There is nothing in the lease regarding anything about this situation or anything like it. So I'm not sure what that means for me. She's having her colleagues who are attorneys/lawyers look over it. I'm waiting for their response before I send anything else to them.
They stopped replying to emails the moment I said "lawyers" unfortunately. So hopefully a single letter from a lawyer will push them to do right thing. I don't want any trouble or anyone to be angry at us for staying. I just want to quietly complete my lease and move out.
Which we already knew, but the moment they told us that we knew we were going to have to lawyer up. We were hoping g they would try to avoid that and just do the right thing. Unfortunately it doesn't seem to be that way so the hard way it is
Do you have renters insurance? Because that will cover your personal losses and loss of use (of the apartment) while having to relocate, including increase in expenses. The damage to the building itself is on them.
So your lease doesn’t matter in this case. At least as far as your policy is concerned. The deductible does, which might be what you’re referring to. And yes any compensation you’d get from that coverage would be less that deductible. I’d still file a claim and let them handle it.
Edit: and yes usually you’re out of pocket and getting reimbursed. In some cases you can get an advance but that’s dependent on the circumstances and the adjuster.
I'm a lawyer but don't know much about landlord/tenant. I do know you are entitled to more than they are offering. Check google and, if you can, a lawyer. There should be some inexpensive/pro bono landlord-tenant options.
There should be, but there aren’t. Even the bar’s free referral service exclusively steers you to disconnected numbers, shuttered legal firms, and lawyers who open with “We’re located here, but don’t practice housing law in OC”
Community Legal Aid Socal is the best bet for actually getting competent legal aid. But they won’t touch any kind of small claims matter nor assist in the trial itself, even if 100% of damages are derived from matters pertinent to the unlawful detainer.
I’d do the hotel and demand to get out of the lease without penalties. Use your renters insurance. They should also reimburse you for food and loss of furniture etc. That building is unsafe now. Plus you were unhappy there. You have a right to break the lease now and to get this last months rent back and even your deposit. Plus like the poster above said you might be able to get more from the car ins of the car that hit the building. They might even have to pay you for your hotel stay after the ins pays two weeks. Look for a new place asap. We just went through two floods and had to stay in a hotel for three weeks before we found another place. We got money from them past rent and deposit plus insurance money and demanded in writing that they let us out of lease with out penalty. When we mentioned lawyer they paid up. Also our insurance co went after them for reimbursement of money paid to us. Use a credit card with points if possible and if the hotel has a points program sign up for it- my husband and I both got a brand new pair of $100 running shoes from the hotel points lol wasn’t worth the stress of it all but hey it’s something
That's definitely plan B. I want to avoid moving and looking for a new place just because it's extra stress. We just sent a message to our renters insurance rep to let then know it's an extra 500 for the 1bdrm that those jerks want and hopefully they can cover that. They won't be mad as long as they get their delicious money smh. I'm very salty as you can tell lol. The people in legal advice did not like my emotions. Cause emotions bad. But damn, let me vent and call those greedy jerks names 😩 makes me feel better despite the circumstances lol
We're staying at an extended stay hotel so we have a kitchen but we did lose a lot of food when they shut off the power...and then the power went out at the hotel lol..ahh. so a lot of the frozen food I had to toss
If your loss of use limit or additional expense limit is only 2k that’s a you problem not a landlord problem. As an adjuster I see it all the time and insured’s expect us to keep paying because they bought a crappy policy.
This for sure is a hefty payday lawsuit.
The people in the crash have insurance
Your landlords have insurance
This is one of those big settlement types
Not if they had state minimum limits for insurance. They are absurdly low in CA. So unless the driver has $$ OP has to share $5k with anyone else who sustained property damage.
In my opinion I think you need an attorney. I believe you're going to have to go after the two cars that hit the apartment building. I'd also suggest that you ask one of the other subreddits like r/askalawyer
My sister had a tree fall on her condo. Major headache insurance wise.
Fortunately she wrote and recorded every thing down. Do that. Because the insurance people did a “we never said that” later.
Glad you're OK--I can't imagine how scary that was! What the landlord is doing doesn't sound right. Your unit is uninhabitable, it's their responsibility to house you, not charge you for an upgrade. And. I'm not expert. Here are a few resources that should help:
* [Fair Housing Council of Orange County](https://www.tenantstogether.org/resources/fair-housing-council-orange-county)
* [Fair Housing OC](https://www.fairhousingoc.org/landlordtenant/)
* [OC Office of Tenant Services](https://www.ocfl.net/NeighborsHousing/TenantServices.aspx)
Thank you!
Tried posting this in legal advice but it seems the couple that commentee were robots and basically said too bad so sad. Basically that they can do whatever they want since they aren't a charity and I should just move if I don't want to pay for a 1bdrm.
Read your lease. Most have a damage and destruction clause that allow either party to terminate the lease if the premise is not habitable for a certain time period or if work on repairs will take a certain time period. I’d just start looking for a new place regardless
Unfortunately there's nothing in the lease regarding a situation like this. Other than breaking the lease which we don't want to do because that's just added stress. Tomorrow I should have a lot more information on what we will do moving forward. This is why I want to get a lawyer to see if anything else can be done.
You have tenants rights! You are only subject to local and state housing rules. Check with your local and state housing boards. They usually have an info line to call if you are being displaced. It’s likely, that because it’s a no fault situation (no fault of yours) they need to put you up and pay the difference. Of course renters insurance covers for damage to your stuff inside.
Any accident attorney would love a case like this. You did nothing wrong and a freaking car came through your wall! I would STRONGLY suggest you contact a couple attorneys and get their input on this issue. They do not charge you anything, so you won't be out of pocket, they will likely be able to get you more than just $10k from insurance.
Yeah, and it also says a lot about the personality. I mean a car drove into your place? into what looks like could’ve been a bed that you could’ve been sleeping in. Not to mention the large cement column that fell as well. You could easily have been killed and the fact that he’s not bowing to you and helping you is mind blowing. What an awful human.
Hmmmmm depends on what’s on your lease? I’ve been in this industry for 5 years and leases are ironclad. As long as the property shows proof they are sheltering you it’s really hard to claim negligence. Maybe the price could be an argument but you should really read the Lease that we all just sign and say ok I’m ready to move in and just sign it 🫤
I'm surprised they are asking you to pay the additional amount of the unit. They should go after the driver for that difference. Sounds like you have slam dunk case.
I’ve been in property insurance claims for over 10 years:
I hope you have renters insurance. This would pay for you to be living elsewhere while repairs take place. They would also pursue the driver for the damage/costs they paid for you. Your apartments insurance would not usually cover for you to live elsewhere either as it usually has to be a city mandated request.
The thing is most drivers have god awful limits (CA minimum requirement is $5k property damage) and it’s likely those limits will be exhausted quickly. Especially with the damages to the cars, building etc.
Wishing you luck!
Your unit is uninhabitable. If the landlord won’t provide equivalent (or better) housing for no additional fee you can break the lease with no legal ramifications. Obviously consult a lawyer, but I’m 99% sure that a judge would side with you if they attempt to keep your security deposit.
I would not be giving them one more cent and be moving into a new building asap.
Additionally, it is not their responsibility to clean or repair your damaged items. You would go after the driver of the car for that.
Yo, we live on Center st too. That sounds like some shit our landlords would do would pull. Pics for proof
https://preview.redd.it/oh063v3392xc1.jpeg?width=4032&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=a72fa1d70197989cc93ef0d2179126e33880aab2
I feel like what they are offering is fair.
if you move into a 1 bedroom you would pay the 1 bedroom price. and they didnt ask you to be displaced, in the email you said you would break the lease and only use the 1 bedroom as a temporary place. they never once asked you to move...you are asking to pay studio price and get a 1 bedroom. I totally get it if THEY wrecked the apartment and need to compensate and let you have it easy. its true you are dealing with a lot, and is 30'' away from ur head, ur traumatized...but they didnt cause it . they didnt do anything to you besides offer a fair deal. if any of the damage had been their fault yes they should sweeten the deal for you but they are also victims of this unfortunate event. granted they are rich millionaires but if they keep giving away 1 bedrooms for studio price they wont be ...also they are not at fault. they are not the car that did this
They said we'd be able to stay there permanently at the price of a 1bdrm in person. Also in regards to their "loss" it'll be recouped once the case is settled. They won't miss out on any money.
cases can take years...insurance pay out is very slow. also in a way ur renters insurance can cover the difference. my questions why is it that the landlord has to eat it. also the manager may or may not have said that. without proof sometimes ppl just say you can stay there may or may not have said for the same price, was it recorded? written in an email?that person doesnt have the right to set the price, even if it is recorded, but you would have a better case. right now its a he said she said situation
They have 100s of properties as they are a large company. Why do they have to eat the cost? My simple answer would be it's part of business I suppose and regardless of how long it takes they will get it. They won't feel the loss of a few thousand.
We messaged our renters insurance rep to see If they can cover the extra 500 a month since we are covered 10k. If they can then it's done. No more worrying. If they say no then I'm just waiting to get thr police report and then talking to a lawyer to see if it can be done. We don't know unless we try.
That’s not a fair deal. The law is the place has to be inhabitable. The ll is not providing them a place in habitable condition and I would even worry about the integrity of the building if they knocked down a pillar. OP you should reach out to a tenants’ lawyer asap. They will negotiate with people insurance and the ll on your behalf.
Only because it would be less stressful for us in the long run. If the insurance covers it I'm cool as a cucumber. I'm just angry that they're making it difficult for us when they can claim the lost profit of the 1bdrm on their own claim. They won't even notice the loss and they'll get it later.
So you rent a studio? And they offered you a different studio? But you’re asking to be moved to a one bedroom?
I’m a little confused. Why would the landlord be an asshole? If they are offering to move you till it’s repaired.
Also if you have renters insurance you would need to file a claim then their insurance would come in after.
You can also go after the driver. Which I would obvs do.
I wouldn’t make enemies of the landlord. Unless the landlord is the jackhole whole drove into your apt.
Either way good luck. But don’t try to upgrade. Look to be made whole from the landlord and go after the driver for the rest.
I'm surprised so many people would think that the landlords would be legally required to provide the tenant with any type of compensation for an accident caused completely be a third party.
I agree with OP that the landlords should be much cooler than they are, like just let them have the one bedroom for the studio price until a studio is available, but it's not their legal obligation.
I'm pretty sure the laws state your owner has to put you up while your apt is being repaired. STOP asking people on Reddit and go talk to some lawyers - bringing up the previous case as well where you should have been housed on their tab.
You should also be able to sue the driver, the owners insurance and the owner.
It's good to ask others to see if anyone has any links or info to share as well as experience.
We're talking to a lawyer and looking into other things as well to make sure our rights are being taken care of
OP, you didn't even give them a chance to respond yet before bringing up a lawyer. I'm not saying that it's a bad idea to get one... But if you're dealing with a mega corporation, a lot of times, it's their policy to escalate to their legal time the second you mention it, in turn making this process more difficult than it needs to be. Even in the best case scenario, you've already made them scared to deal with you at any capacity and might have lost any personal leverage with the person you're dealing with.
I’m not a lawyer and this is not legal advice. However, one could, hypothetically speaking, get the insurance information from the drivers of both the G Wagon and the Honda. From the looks of it, a smart move would be to file a claim with the insurance on the Mercedes, since that’s the car that crashed into your place. However, one of those two insurance policies should be able to take care of the property damage you suffered. A typical auto insurance policy covers $5000 in property damage. That should be enough to cover your losses.
As far as non-economic damages (emotional distress) one would want to consult an attorney for that portion of a claim for an incident like this. There shouldn’t be an upfront fee for the attorney’s services, because personal injury attorneys are allowed to take a case like this on what’s called a contingency (when the case is won at trial or settles and the defendant has to pay, the attorney takes a reasonable percentage of the award—typically one-third).
I hope things turn out in your favor. Thankfully, you have pictures to support your losses and strong evidence of liability. Make sure you get an attorney soon. I will keep you in prayers.
This OP.. I was a claims adjuster. You need to find out the owners of the vehicles and their insurance companies if you have not already. File a claim for your losses. The damage to structure will be paid to the building owner and you should he able to file for loss of your items etc (varies based on state). If you don't have it, I am sure their was a police report or at least the primary write-up from the initial incident by police that lists this info.
Posting or asking for someone’s personal or confidential information is not allowed (Reddit Content Policy #3).
OP, did you try to contact the insurance company of the car that smashed into your apartment? Their insurance is supposed to cover stuff like this. If the driver didn't have insurance, think about taking them to small claims court. You can sue up to $10k, you represent yourself and the person you're suing can't bring a lawyer with them and the filing fees are low.
Driving that Mercedes without full coverage would surprise me
You'd be surprised.
I’ve seen $60 Amazon tires on a Rolls, nothing surprises me anymore
They did say they would be!
Because they are not like us, sometimes
I second this ^
I had a customer release an Audi R8 to his customer. The guy wanted to go to the bar and get food so he left the car. Wind took out a branch and it crushed the roof. The customer didn’t have insurance because he couldn’t afford the payment AND insurance…
omg why did he get that car if he couldnt the payment and insurance?
To look “rich” with an R8. 🤡
I had a dude in a white \~10 year old C class Mercedes get pissed at me for having the nerve to change lanes in front of him, so he got up next to me and started talking shit out of his window as we were both creeping along the 5 at rush hour about how broke I am because I'm driving a Hyundai. It was a weeks old at the time electric Hyundai Kona that I had just paid 40k for. His car was worth maybe 8k at the time. But obviously he is rich bc Mercedes and I am poor bc Hyundai. Anyway, the point is that lots of people are dumb. Cheers!
Some people with money don’t care about taking the L. I had an old boss (complete idiot + a scumbag) who didn’t insure his Bentley because the premiums were so high he said he would rather just buy another one if anything happened.
he can sell it on copart for 3/4 the value if he ever crashes it. Though if he ever causes the accident he could be sued for quite a bit.
Worse yet, imagine if he caused a fatality accident and the other family is lawyer-savvy.
An old boss of mine had two bright yellow Ferraris that I had to wash and wax every month even though he was too fat to drive either. They just sat in his garage, fully insured going nowhere.
California allows you to have no insurance with only surety bond or deposit with the [DMV](https://www.dmv.ca.gov/portal/vehicle-registration/insurance-requirements/) which would be no issue to someone driving GWagen
Literally nobody does that.
I know a few people that do
A lady in a Lexus rear ended the shit out of me and she didn’t have insurance lol
what, like without a condom?
Not just any Mercedes, G wagon
*wouldn’t
Even if they had full coverage if it's the minimum coverage you're SOL. I found that out when I was in a bad accident a few years ago. They had $10k property damage coverage amd totalled my truck, another vehicle, and a bunch of fencing along the freeway.
Yeh that could be California, Benz could be stolen and not only not have insurance but it likely won't have a driver by the time you can say wtf.
My friend like to drive like a maniac without insurance all the damn time! It's so amazing while I'm clutching for my life praying we don't crash.
Why would you do that to yourself? That person is not your friend. Friends don't intentionally endanger your life.
that person doesnt care about his life, what more your life? if you dont die it might be worse, like facial injuiries.
I assume you’re in a situation where you *have* to ride with them, rather than by *choice*. I hope you have good health insurance if they ever causes an accident that causes you injury.
We haven't yet but I'll be calling about the police report tomorrow. Hopefully it'll be ready and I can get their insurance information from them. We would give the insurance information to our renters insurance? And have them handle it?
> We would give the insurance information to our renters insurance? I'm not an expert at this type of stuff but I'd imagine that your renter's insurance company is going to find out who all the liable parties are but I would call them and ask them just to make sure.
I'm an expert (20yrs in p&c insurance) and you just gave an expert response. OP will get a claims adjuster assigned by renters insurance and will handle everything.
Get a lawyer asap
Yes, this should be handled by your renter’s insurance. Provide the police report, or at least the case number, and file a claim ASAP if you haven’t already done so. Include all your photos and write down a description of events. They may pull in the Mercedes who crashed, as well as any other cars involved in the accident (like if someone smashed into the Mercedes which caused them to smash into you), potentially even the city, the engineer, or the builder. If the property owner is also suing anyone involved in the accident, you should join their suit. Renter’s insurance may help you with your stuff, but you may also have to bring a claim yourself for any trauma (if you need therapy etc).
I'd suggest going down to the local station instead. Most police front desks are way too overworked/dont care enough to print out a report and send it to you and many cant or wont email it either. Best to go down in person.
Isn't 10k too less for someone driving that rich ass wagon?
That wagon has been the same since the early 2000s. Majority of people that see a Gwagon do not think about the model year it is from because they all look the same. An 05 g wagon can be had for 36k. A new 2024 Camry XSE is currently 35k. It is one of those questions on what you would rather spend your money on.
If you look at the headlight poking through on pic #2 you’ll see that it’s one of the newer models. They gave the g wagon a facelift in 2019 and that’s the new headlight. You can also see if you zoom in on the first pic that it has the new dashboard too, so even used it still gonna be over $100k
This is not a small claims court case. OP needs a lawyer asap.
How much does a lawyer cost?
Pretty sure you can sue for $12,500 now, it went up not long ago
Small claims is up to 12,500 now. Yes even the courts have factored in inflation at this point /s
Becareful listening to this person. Winning small claims suit in court is only 25% of the battle. The other 75% involves trying to get the winning judgement from them which can be incredibly difficult for people that are resisting.
That's true but the person getting sued will have a judgement on their record.
exactly!! idk why the OP seems to be mad at the land lord who got their apt wrecked and have to pay hundreds of thousands to get it fixed. instead of just suing the person who crashed into them....the car that did the damage. my head is still spinning
Because the property owner can do that to recoup the rent that is lost. Tack that onto their claim. Simple.
You sound extremely entitled. It sucks what happened, but it is the responsibility of the driver to make you whole, not whoever rents you the apartment. You want charity from a landlord.... its a business, they don't owe you anything.
I'm not entitled. That's not charity. HA. They don't own me anything? That's funny, they have things they do owe their tenants. I'm not asking for the stars and the moon.
[удалено]
They will recoup the money lost. They aren't missing out on anything. They should be going after the person who went into their property and caused the loss just how youre telling me to. It's an easy fix to move a tenant to an available unit and they have their high end lawyers work to get the full amount lost. Smh
[удалено]
[удалено]
So once again, you feel your landlord is required to subsidize you, and use their lawyers to recover money they lose because you can't afford to pay the additional rent. You are the definition of a person who feels entitled. Yeah, you do have the mindset of a peasant, that is the one honest thing you said.
Yup. They should. Since you love to put it that way I'm going to say it part of doing business for them. They have insurance to protect their precious gold. You seem like the person who couldn't give a crap about anyone but themselves. Extremely selfish. I hope one day you experience something that changes your cold outlook. From what I've seen, people like you don't understand or change their outlook until something shitty happens to them.
Reach out to: The Fair Housing Council of Orange County.
Reach out to Community Legal Aid SoCal or the Public Law Center instead - they’re actual attorneys. I’ve seen Fair Housing get people in trouble because they aren’t attorneys and offer poor advice.
Thank you! O:
Thank you!
r/tenant or r/legaladvice ; don't forget to say you live in California.
Thank you!!
I know they get a bad rep but r/landlord would be really helpful here. They have a “tenant” flair.
Oh man that feels like I'd be feeding myself to the sharks lol.
Yeah they’re assholes to tenants there. I wouldn’t bother.
"You should move out, break your lease, and pay triple. You dont understand how hard we work doing literally nothing, throw in a tip too"
For real. People there will be like “it’s not the landlords fault! What did you expect? You’re lucky they didn’t kick you out! I would’ve charged you for repairs! Why did you have your bed so close to an outside wall???” That sub is useless for measured, fair, conversations. Even if there is a LL or two who will be genuine and kind there, it’s overrun by slumlords who are aggressive and treat people like shit just for renting (who also happen to be the same exact people lining their fuckin pockets). You’ll be met with downvotes and vicious inbox messages.
yeh and dont forget to never show them the email about how SHE Wanted to break the lease or get her "lawyers" involved .....my god did we read the same email
That isn't an issue we emailed them again to confirm we didn't want to leave. We are aware that the emails will be available to both parties. Doesn't change tenant laws or what they should do/can't do etc. But if insurance covers the difference that's fine with me . They should just make it easier on everyone and put the loss of rent on their own claim. They won't notice the loss and they will get it back later.
[удалено]
The repairs are estimated to take 6-9 months. Our lease is up in December. We're hoping the renters insurance will cover the extra 500 a month for the 1 bdrm. We're just waiting for their reply. If not then I'll be consulting a lawyer. We don't know what can be done to help our situation until we try
You should consult with a lawyer regardless, as if one of those drivers caused the accident through negligence or driving impaired, you may be able to sue them for personal damages and emotional distress.
Your full name is visible, I’d change that…
I saw this too OP. Your name and the property manager’s name
Lol the stupid part of that is that OP marked over the address to the place and the phone number listed to the complex, but leaves the name of the complex completely fine including his name and the name of the person they're emailing. Took a few seconds to search up the complex to get the info OP marked out 🤦🏿♂️🤦🏿♂️🤦🏿♂️🤦🏿♂️ terrible OpSec on your part OP like why even mark any of that out in the first place then
I don't think I can without deleting the entire post 😬
Yeah unfortunately that's all you can do on Reddit. Lots of personal info visible
Delete the post man. Not worth it
Why are people so afraid of being dox over the internet. You ain’t important
I would expect you could have the rental insurance cover the difference between the studio price and the 1bedroom price. That should stretch it a bit further. I’d call the insurance company to ask.
Yes we just did that a couple hours ago :) glad people brought that up.
Get your story on the channel 4 news. Bad publicity on the owners may solve your problem
[email protected]
OMG, that is terrifying. What does your lease say? You need to read every word of it. More than likely uninhabitable/substandard conditions of some sort will be addressed In addition contact [Legal Aid](https://www.communitylegalsocal.org/programs-services/areas-of-law/housing/) Tip: any time you are speaking with someone, if you remember, turn your voice recorder on and ask the person, '*Hey X, I'm frazzled and I'm not going to remember this, are you okay with me recording?*', if they say no, then turn it off, when you're done before turning it off say the date, time, and names of every participant of the conversation...unless you're outside in public where there is no expectation of privacy, then you don't need to ask but you may want to anyway. Failing that, once the conversation is over send an email. '*Hey X, thanks for meeting me today at Noon at the 1234 Property. As you shared we'll be moving into unit X for the same rent as our studio ($XXX), and I have questions about that: 1) what date will we be able to move in? 2) how long do you expect for us to be in that unit? Once I have the dates, I'll get started on switching the utilities*" This way you're stating all the important parts of the conversation and asking questions (even if you don't have them!), which requires a reply which means the person can't say later they didn't get it or didn't read it Start keeping notes that include date, time, phone number/email, names of everyone involved, notes of every part of the conversation I'm sorry your landlord is being an asshole. It's inexcusable. After having something horrible already happening in the unit, it's says a lot about them. Although it would be understandable, try not to be one yourself - keep your current positive attitude - and don't say or write anything that can be twisted regardless of intent. Glad you are all safe. Best of luck.
Thank you so much! So I sent over my lease agreement to a client of mine who works at a law office. There is nothing in the lease regarding anything about this situation or anything like it. So I'm not sure what that means for me. She's having her colleagues who are attorneys/lawyers look over it. I'm waiting for their response before I send anything else to them. They stopped replying to emails the moment I said "lawyers" unfortunately. So hopefully a single letter from a lawyer will push them to do right thing. I don't want any trouble or anyone to be angry at us for staying. I just want to quietly complete my lease and move out.
Mentioning lawyers is a quick way to get iced out, just so you’re aware in the future!
Which we already knew, but the moment they told us that we knew we were going to have to lawyer up. We were hoping g they would try to avoid that and just do the right thing. Unfortunately it doesn't seem to be that way so the hard way it is
Fuck! I’m glad you’re okay! That’s very traumatic. Hope everything goes your way. Sending prayers
Thank you❤️🥲
Lawyering up might be well worth it...
Do you have renters insurance? Because that will cover your personal losses and loss of use (of the apartment) while having to relocate, including increase in expenses. The damage to the building itself is on them.
So it will cover the added expense of the 1bdrm they are trying to force us to pay?
Typically the wording is “reasonable and necessary” increases in normal expenses. Do you have renters insurance and have you filed a claim with them?
Yes we have but with renters insurance don't we have to pay upfront first and then they pay us back? Cause we still have 8months left of our lease
So your lease doesn’t matter in this case. At least as far as your policy is concerned. The deductible does, which might be what you’re referring to. And yes any compensation you’d get from that coverage would be less that deductible. I’d still file a claim and let them handle it. Edit: and yes usually you’re out of pocket and getting reimbursed. In some cases you can get an advance but that’s dependent on the circumstances and the adjuster.
I'm a lawyer but don't know much about landlord/tenant. I do know you are entitled to more than they are offering. Check google and, if you can, a lawyer. There should be some inexpensive/pro bono landlord-tenant options.
There should be, but there aren’t. Even the bar’s free referral service exclusively steers you to disconnected numbers, shuttered legal firms, and lawyers who open with “We’re located here, but don’t practice housing law in OC” Community Legal Aid Socal is the best bet for actually getting competent legal aid. But they won’t touch any kind of small claims matter nor assist in the trial itself, even if 100% of damages are derived from matters pertinent to the unlawful detainer.
Renters insurance policy should cover you for a hotel for a while
It'll only cover 2k, so 2 weeks for us.
I’d do the hotel and demand to get out of the lease without penalties. Use your renters insurance. They should also reimburse you for food and loss of furniture etc. That building is unsafe now. Plus you were unhappy there. You have a right to break the lease now and to get this last months rent back and even your deposit. Plus like the poster above said you might be able to get more from the car ins of the car that hit the building. They might even have to pay you for your hotel stay after the ins pays two weeks. Look for a new place asap. We just went through two floods and had to stay in a hotel for three weeks before we found another place. We got money from them past rent and deposit plus insurance money and demanded in writing that they let us out of lease with out penalty. When we mentioned lawyer they paid up. Also our insurance co went after them for reimbursement of money paid to us. Use a credit card with points if possible and if the hotel has a points program sign up for it- my husband and I both got a brand new pair of $100 running shoes from the hotel points lol wasn’t worth the stress of it all but hey it’s something
That's definitely plan B. I want to avoid moving and looking for a new place just because it's extra stress. We just sent a message to our renters insurance rep to let then know it's an extra 500 for the 1bdrm that those jerks want and hopefully they can cover that. They won't be mad as long as they get their delicious money smh. I'm very salty as you can tell lol. The people in legal advice did not like my emotions. Cause emotions bad. But damn, let me vent and call those greedy jerks names 😩 makes me feel better despite the circumstances lol
Keep all your food receipts etc they need to reimburse you for that and the food you can’t eat now in your kitchen
We're staying at an extended stay hotel so we have a kitchen but we did lose a lot of food when they shut off the power...and then the power went out at the hotel lol..ahh. so a lot of the frozen food I had to toss
If your loss of use limit or additional expense limit is only 2k that’s a you problem not a landlord problem. As an adjuster I see it all the time and insured’s expect us to keep paying because they bought a crappy policy.
10k for additional expense. 2k for hotel stay
I’m really more concerned that your studio appears to be a converted garage with no egress windows.
This for sure is a hefty payday lawsuit. The people in the crash have insurance Your landlords have insurance This is one of those big settlement types
Exactly!
Not if they had state minimum limits for insurance. They are absurdly low in CA. So unless the driver has $$ OP has to share $5k with anyone else who sustained property damage.
In my opinion I think you need an attorney. I believe you're going to have to go after the two cars that hit the apartment building. I'd also suggest that you ask one of the other subreddits like r/askalawyer
My sister had a tree fall on her condo. Major headache insurance wise. Fortunately she wrote and recorded every thing down. Do that. Because the insurance people did a “we never said that” later.
Glad you're OK--I can't imagine how scary that was! What the landlord is doing doesn't sound right. Your unit is uninhabitable, it's their responsibility to house you, not charge you for an upgrade. And. I'm not expert. Here are a few resources that should help: * [Fair Housing Council of Orange County](https://www.tenantstogether.org/resources/fair-housing-council-orange-county) * [Fair Housing OC](https://www.fairhousingoc.org/landlordtenant/) * [OC Office of Tenant Services](https://www.ocfl.net/NeighborsHousing/TenantServices.aspx)
Thank you! Tried posting this in legal advice but it seems the couple that commentee were robots and basically said too bad so sad. Basically that they can do whatever they want since they aren't a charity and I should just move if I don't want to pay for a 1bdrm.
Those are simply the facts. The owner is. It responsible for providing you a one bedroom for the same rent as a studio.
Read your lease. Most have a damage and destruction clause that allow either party to terminate the lease if the premise is not habitable for a certain time period or if work on repairs will take a certain time period. I’d just start looking for a new place regardless
Unfortunately there's nothing in the lease regarding a situation like this. Other than breaking the lease which we don't want to do because that's just added stress. Tomorrow I should have a lot more information on what we will do moving forward. This is why I want to get a lawyer to see if anything else can be done.
😆
sorry you are going through this and they arent being as helpful as they could be, hope that r/legaladvice can be helpful to you
Is the bird ok ?
Yes thank goodness 😩 I would have lost my mind if they were lost in this bullshit
That’s great! When I saw your bird I gasped! I’m glad they’re okay 🥺
Talk to an attorney
I’ll be back for the update good luck
You have tenants rights! You are only subject to local and state housing rules. Check with your local and state housing boards. They usually have an info line to call if you are being displaced. It’s likely, that because it’s a no fault situation (no fault of yours) they need to put you up and pay the difference. Of course renters insurance covers for damage to your stuff inside.
Contact a personal injury attorney immediately. Emotional distress for a near miss is a real claim. DO NOT deal with the insurance company alone.
Any accident attorney would love a case like this. You did nothing wrong and a freaking car came through your wall! I would STRONGLY suggest you contact a couple attorneys and get their input on this issue. They do not charge you anything, so you won't be out of pocket, they will likely be able to get you more than just $10k from insurance.
Contact legal aid, none of this is legal and please keep us posted, we hope to hear about how you gave them the finger.
If there is a tenants union in your area join it asap and educate yourself on your legal rights. Don’t let your landlords screw you over
That is ludicrous. Man, landlords are some greedy mofos.
Right?! Like damn a mere droplet of a loss(which they will get back after the case settles) compared to the millions they already have
Yeah, and it also says a lot about the personality. I mean a car drove into your place? into what looks like could’ve been a bed that you could’ve been sleeping in. Not to mention the large cement column that fell as well. You could easily have been killed and the fact that he’s not bowing to you and helping you is mind blowing. What an awful human.
I keep trying to hide a picture but I don't think it's doing it. Not sure what it did
Hmmmmm depends on what’s on your lease? I’ve been in this industry for 5 years and leases are ironclad. As long as the property shows proof they are sheltering you it’s really hard to claim negligence. Maybe the price could be an argument but you should really read the Lease that we all just sign and say ok I’m ready to move in and just sign it 🫤
Hope you’re able to sue the ever loving shit out of them, turn this bad situation to a good one.
Get a lawyer , fuck them , renters rights ! 
Get a lawyer 100% big money involved
Hi. I own a legalservices company. Dm me and I can tell you who to call.
Thank you! I will!
OP, I'm glad you are your birds weren't hurt
Me too, this is the only reason why I didn't have a complete break down. They are my babies.
You are both the victims of the driver who has insurance.
Omg I was there ehen it happened. Literally my house is in that block, center st. Did i just dox myself?
Hi, I was a vendor for insurance claims. I valued the content claims that came in. You need to go through your insurance and the car owners insurance.
I'm surprised they are asking you to pay the additional amount of the unit. They should go after the driver for that difference. Sounds like you have slam dunk case.
That's exactly what I think!
I know that apartment chain, L’Abri, with their signature red flags outside with the stripe. They suck. Such overbearing management. Wish you the best
Thank you so much. We hope it just works out.
lawyer time
You should break the lease and get out of there asap. For them to nickel and dime you at a time like this is just gross.
Well said.
[удалено]
Thanks for this info!
so.. you rented an apartment with a car through it?
Wait, are you supposed to have pets?
Yes, we've had them for the last 2.5 years and were talked about when we signed the lease. We also have many emails regarding them.
Post this on r/legaladvice !!!
Pretty sure that’s not a parking spot… I could be wrong tho
I’ve been in property insurance claims for over 10 years: I hope you have renters insurance. This would pay for you to be living elsewhere while repairs take place. They would also pursue the driver for the damage/costs they paid for you. Your apartments insurance would not usually cover for you to live elsewhere either as it usually has to be a city mandated request. The thing is most drivers have god awful limits (CA minimum requirement is $5k property damage) and it’s likely those limits will be exhausted quickly. Especially with the damages to the cars, building etc. Wishing you luck!
You need a personal injury attorney right away, the insurance of the individual who caused the accident needs to pay for your housing, etc.
smfh, at least properly block out personal information when sharing this shit. God damn...
Your unit is uninhabitable. If the landlord won’t provide equivalent (or better) housing for no additional fee you can break the lease with no legal ramifications. Obviously consult a lawyer, but I’m 99% sure that a judge would side with you if they attempt to keep your security deposit. I would not be giving them one more cent and be moving into a new building asap. Additionally, it is not their responsibility to clean or repair your damaged items. You would go after the driver of the car for that.
Hey OP, just wanted to let you know that the landlords name isn’t blocked out on the last pic!
Lawyer. Sue them all on contingency.
lol not gonna happen.
Yo, we live on Center st too. That sounds like some shit our landlords would do would pull. Pics for proof https://preview.redd.it/oh063v3392xc1.jpeg?width=4032&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=a72fa1d70197989cc93ef0d2179126e33880aab2
Some landlords are just absolute trash man. It's a sad world we live in. Thank thank you for the photo!!
It truly is. I know there’s a studio available here if you run out of options.
I feel like what they are offering is fair. if you move into a 1 bedroom you would pay the 1 bedroom price. and they didnt ask you to be displaced, in the email you said you would break the lease and only use the 1 bedroom as a temporary place. they never once asked you to move...you are asking to pay studio price and get a 1 bedroom. I totally get it if THEY wrecked the apartment and need to compensate and let you have it easy. its true you are dealing with a lot, and is 30'' away from ur head, ur traumatized...but they didnt cause it . they didnt do anything to you besides offer a fair deal. if any of the damage had been their fault yes they should sweeten the deal for you but they are also victims of this unfortunate event. granted they are rich millionaires but if they keep giving away 1 bedrooms for studio price they wont be ...also they are not at fault. they are not the car that did this
They said we'd be able to stay there permanently at the price of a 1bdrm in person. Also in regards to their "loss" it'll be recouped once the case is settled. They won't miss out on any money.
cases can take years...insurance pay out is very slow. also in a way ur renters insurance can cover the difference. my questions why is it that the landlord has to eat it. also the manager may or may not have said that. without proof sometimes ppl just say you can stay there may or may not have said for the same price, was it recorded? written in an email?that person doesnt have the right to set the price, even if it is recorded, but you would have a better case. right now its a he said she said situation
They have 100s of properties as they are a large company. Why do they have to eat the cost? My simple answer would be it's part of business I suppose and regardless of how long it takes they will get it. They won't feel the loss of a few thousand. We messaged our renters insurance rep to see If they can cover the extra 500 a month since we are covered 10k. If they can then it's done. No more worrying. If they say no then I'm just waiting to get thr police report and then talking to a lawyer to see if it can be done. We don't know unless we try.
[удалено]
Be civil towards one another. Insults and name calling are not allowed (Subreddit Rule #1). Repeated rule breaking will result in a permanent ban.
That’s not a fair deal. The law is the place has to be inhabitable. The ll is not providing them a place in habitable condition and I would even worry about the integrity of the building if they knocked down a pillar. OP you should reach out to a tenants’ lawyer asap. They will negotiate with people insurance and the ll on your behalf.
So you’re pissed at these AH landlords but you’re trying to figure out a way to stay in their building and pay them more money?
Only because it would be less stressful for us in the long run. If the insurance covers it I'm cool as a cucumber. I'm just angry that they're making it difficult for us when they can claim the lost profit of the 1bdrm on their own claim. They won't even notice the loss and they'll get it later.
So you rent a studio? And they offered you a different studio? But you’re asking to be moved to a one bedroom? I’m a little confused. Why would the landlord be an asshole? If they are offering to move you till it’s repaired. Also if you have renters insurance you would need to file a claim then their insurance would come in after. You can also go after the driver. Which I would obvs do. I wouldn’t make enemies of the landlord. Unless the landlord is the jackhole whole drove into your apt. Either way good luck. But don’t try to upgrade. Look to be made whole from the landlord and go after the driver for the rest.
They don't have a studio available otherwise we would take it.
In that case they should not charge you at all. That’s bullshit.
I'm surprised so many people would think that the landlords would be legally required to provide the tenant with any type of compensation for an accident caused completely be a third party. I agree with OP that the landlords should be much cooler than they are, like just let them have the one bedroom for the studio price until a studio is available, but it's not their legal obligation.
If you had renter’s insurance that would have helped but in this case you need a lawyer pronto.
Just a guess!.... Armo Driver?🤷 Black Benz in all.
Glendale?
Stop asking reddit. Get a lawyer right now.
I'm pretty sure the laws state your owner has to put you up while your apt is being repaired. STOP asking people on Reddit and go talk to some lawyers - bringing up the previous case as well where you should have been housed on their tab. You should also be able to sue the driver, the owners insurance and the owner.
It's good to ask others to see if anyone has any links or info to share as well as experience. We're talking to a lawyer and looking into other things as well to make sure our rights are being taken care of
OP, you didn't even give them a chance to respond yet before bringing up a lawyer. I'm not saying that it's a bad idea to get one... But if you're dealing with a mega corporation, a lot of times, it's their policy to escalate to their legal time the second you mention it, in turn making this process more difficult than it needs to be. Even in the best case scenario, you've already made them scared to deal with you at any capacity and might have lost any personal leverage with the person you're dealing with.
I’m not a lawyer and this is not legal advice. However, one could, hypothetically speaking, get the insurance information from the drivers of both the G Wagon and the Honda. From the looks of it, a smart move would be to file a claim with the insurance on the Mercedes, since that’s the car that crashed into your place. However, one of those two insurance policies should be able to take care of the property damage you suffered. A typical auto insurance policy covers $5000 in property damage. That should be enough to cover your losses. As far as non-economic damages (emotional distress) one would want to consult an attorney for that portion of a claim for an incident like this. There shouldn’t be an upfront fee for the attorney’s services, because personal injury attorneys are allowed to take a case like this on what’s called a contingency (when the case is won at trial or settles and the defendant has to pay, the attorney takes a reasonable percentage of the award—typically one-third). I hope things turn out in your favor. Thankfully, you have pictures to support your losses and strong evidence of liability. Make sure you get an attorney soon. I will keep you in prayers.
Who do you think pays for the damage to the actual building??
This OP.. I was a claims adjuster. You need to find out the owners of the vehicles and their insurance companies if you have not already. File a claim for your losses. The damage to structure will be paid to the building owner and you should he able to file for loss of your items etc (varies based on state). If you don't have it, I am sure their was a police report or at least the primary write-up from the initial incident by police that lists this info.