How can I be held liable for damage without proof?

[Loch]

A few weeks ago, late on a Saturday night we had a visit from a belligerent super of another building owned by our LL. He said there was water coming from our apartment into the apartments one and two floors below. Before he even entered the bathroom he was going on about kids dumping water on the floor. Oh I cannot even describe how rude he was.

Long story short he got into the bathroom and said "See the floor is wet". Except really the floor was not wet. It had been mopped a day before and still had a decent shine to it. He flat out refused to actually check that the floor was indeed wet. He also refused to more properly identify himself or give his name and left in a huff, saying he would be back the next day to check on the situation. Now my husband is a plumber and was trying to tell him how there might be a situation in the wall. He wouldn't listen. He also never returned nor has our regular super said anything to us.

I called the management company the following Monday, never reaching a human who could help me and leaving detailed messages on machines. Now today we get a letter saying they had been notified that someone in our residence was dumping water on the floor and that this was our notice that if it happened again we would be held liable for any damage to the LL and the tenant's property.

I will be contacting the management company tomorrow to refute this charge. However I have been trying to determine what the standard of proof is in situations like this. If there is a problem that is not our fault, how do we even demonstrate that before this situation escalates?

Thanks for any help or pointing in the right direction.

[TenantNet]

First, never let them into your apt without the required notice. In some cases, where a real emergency exists, they do have the right to enter, but in my experience most of those cases are not real.

A broken pipe would be a real emergency, but it would take you about two minutes to go downstairs to determine if it was real or not. They would need more - in my opinion - than the word of a person who refused to identify himself. You have a right to get his name, his title and his credentials.

A few years back my LL tried the same thing. I called the office and said if it's a real problem, send someone upstairs. They never did. In another instance they had some plumbers who didn't speak English (not a crime in itself) trying to tell me the leak was from the drain pipe in my bathtub, which was merely a guess, and then they wanted to open up the wall 6 feet above the bathtub. Of course I refused that.

But document everything with diaries, photos, witnesses and even video as they will make bogus claims of denial of access.

[Loch]

Thank you kindly for your advice. My husband talked to our own super who said not to worry but with a letter like that it is hard not to. As it is hard to actually speak to anyone at our management company, I am simply going to put my refutation (bah, is that a word?) in writing and follow your advice as to keeping documentation of everything.

It is just kind of sad as my husband has lived in this building almost his entire life. The building was sold a few years back and although the same management company is still in charge the quality of life here has gone downhill. The heat sucks, we went through a severe mice infestation last year, the new elevators they put in and raised everyone's rent to pay for break down all the time.

Thank you again and happy holidays!