Read more about the story here: www.click2houston.com/news/investigates/2023/05/08/homeowner-stuck-with-18k-repair-bill-after-damage-done-by-company-she-did-not-hire/
She might also want to ask why, if the fence belongs to the trail folks, did she get the ugly side of the fence. The person who puts up the fence gets the ugly side 100%.
I agree. Not sure why she waited so long to sue. Once the fence company said no, and the trail association said nothing, she should have filed her lawsuit. The problem here is that people still think that corporations will do the "right" thing, the moral and ethical thing. They will not. Which is why you just sue them. Sad but true.
And folks wonder why good people 'suddenly snap' and do crazy things. This is an example of what causes good people to snap. This poor woman is completely blameless, and now burdened with a huge debt. I hope a consumer rights attorney saw this news story and can help her, not only get the $18k cost covered, but maybe even some damages for all the BS and stress she's had to endure.
@@WinterWolf94 She can only sue if she has money to pay a lawyer or a lawyer volunteers to assist for free or on contingency. She is already in the hole 18,000 and likely cannot afford to pay a lawyer. She could represent herself but would probably lose on some technicality that scummy lawyers love to use like filing deadlines or proper form submittals or any of the other 1000 bureaucratic rules that need to be followed before the case even makes it to court. But assuming she does get representation. Does she have 6/12/24 months to wait for an extremely slow legal system while that 18,000 dollar debt is hanging over her gaining interest and leading to debt collectors coming after her. Corporations and rich people may be able to wait that long, but people living paycheck to paycheck cannot.
The amount of stress in her voice is heartbreaking, especially because she is in no way responsible for the damage. And after spending $18,000 to amend a problem she did not cause, how could she even afford to take them to court?
And she’s the sweetest person. Always caring for others. I hate seeing my sweet friend this stressed over a situation that she shouldn’t have to worry about. They need to do the right thing and take care of this.
Easy. Find a lawyer that will do it and accept payment only after the case is won. Im sure it'll take a bit of work but this is about as close to a guaranteed win in court as it gets. Hard to imagine too many lawyers would pass up on this.
thats precisely why they denied the claim: they knew that she couldnt incur further costs so lose nothing by denying it. other than guaranteeing them a place in hell, of course.
That takes money and many months(maybe years) to even get to court. Most people don't have the money to afford a lawyer and the court fees involved. Even if you win. you still cannot get pay back all costs associated with your case so there is still some loss to you regardless.
the insurance company is copping out of their responsibility. She needs to take the insurance company to court. Whether the marker was in the right place or not is irrelevant.
Some crappy insurance companies will try to only be responsible for a portion of the damages. Someone hit my car once and the insurance company was only offering to pay for 60% of the damages even though they were 100% at fault. After 6 months of fighting with them I settled and took a loss.
That takes money and many months(maybe years) to even get to court. Most people don't have the money to afford a lawyer and the court fees involved. Even if you win. you still cannot get pay back all costs associated with your case so there is still some loss to you regardless.
Lawyer here. Fix it, if you’re able, and sue the company. You 100% do not need to pay that. It is their fault. OF COURSE they will tell you no. Fight them anyway. Hire a property lawyer dude. Ponte las pilas
Lawyer you say? So any judges monitoring this channel would know the name of the gavel used in the court system. It's name is Ammit the god Ammit god Ammit say it fast. A reminder when abusing power the god Ammit the devourer of souls and lake of fire shows up. It's fun to research these fate gods and gatekeepers. During everyones life review they have to meet with the fates and gatekeepers if their soul is lighter than the feather of Ma'at they go to the gatekeeper to take them to their proper and final destination. If they do not behind Ptah Atum Ra the hand of God Anubis Osiris Sobek Horus and Set Papa Legba the keeper of the balance of the universe there's a backup plan if their soul is heavier than the feather of Ma'at the god Ammit must devour their soul the second and final death the lake of fire. The gavels name is Ammit divine retribution. Have an amazing Apocalypse Zeus'unknown brother Apocalypse the unveiling of truth.
This is disgusting. Why on earth has this poor woman been left to foot the repair bill? Big companies get away with so much these days. They are bullies. I pray she gets her money back.
its the city and the power company trying to screw her. The city probably wants her land, the power company wants her to upgrade her service so they can charge more.
Ah Texas...how quick you forgot about when y'all had a snap freeze..and power grid outages that the state basically just told you to "deal with" these contractors are hired by your state and county. I know transplants regret moving there😂
Contractors are notorious for leaving trails of liability behind them, which is why any time you use a contractor, you make sure they're licensed and bonded, and you make sure the paperwork is in order before they step onto your property with any implements of destruction.
I have worked for contractor company's. This should always be covered by the contractor. If you mess something up, you fix it. It's that simple. Not directly your fault? Doesn't matter. You fix it unless it's something neither of you could have in any way forseen, and then you can DISCUSS solutions with the client. I really hope she gets justice, this is a huge amount of stress no one deserves
Im sure the contractor will say it wasn't marked or it was marked wrong. That's the problem when you "nick" a cable. The damage comes months later and all the locate marks are gone. Then its finger pointing time.
That is my thought. In most cities you can get utilities marked for free and the contractor could have easily done that to ensure line markers were right. That is probably the same reason the insurance denied the claim. Now, I have no idea who would be at fault if the city came out and incorrectly marked the lines....
@@normcmiller I would definitely name the fence company and the Trail Association and the insurance company do a public review and give them a -1 star on the facts of their performance. Its great that the tv news got involved, but I would shame them all by name to no end.
I think the real issue here is, the fact that she has to bring her house up to the new code standards to get the power back. The house was fine until someone ruined the underground cable.
Exactly. I’m curious to know if she knew that her house’s codes weren’t compliant with the current code. They’ll probably come to a settlement but they bet she will have to pay a portion herself.
Yeah, to me it seems likely the most she could possibly get would be the cost of replacing the wire, which would be inconsequential compared to the amount to fix her house's wiring. If anyone is to blame here, it's the local regulators that are allowing houses to be sold with wiring that is not up to code
@@mandawood9756 of course not. Electrical code updates every 3 years, I seriously doubt your house would pass current code unless it is brand new. 99% of homeowners are not super familiar with Electrical codes unless they are involved in the field.
Oh I know my house wouldn’t. It was built in the 50s and belonged to my parents who renovated part of the house when I was 6. However, we know where the electrical and electrical lines are and the light lines aren’t underground. I’m in a very rural area. It’s actually the water lines that most people have a problem with because roads have now been paved over and the geniuses who ran the lines laid them under the roads that until 15 years ago were still gravel. We have multiple water mains for that reason. I have said that it would probably be cheaper to rip everything out and start new than to try and fix everything and it’s a small house. I’d probably need a new foundation too.
Get an attorney ASAP! Then hopefully with the threat of a lawsuit, this woman will get action and compensation for the NIGHTMARE she has already gone through. Best wishes to her!
Easier said than done. You know Attorney requires retainer's fee? They're not going to do stuff for free or a case that is not a quick win. If she has a job and not below poverty, she will need to flip the legal bill fees.
@@MissTopDJ007 People need to stop suggesting lawsuits for everything. The bleak reality is the cost of an attorney and lawsuit will far exceed the cost of the repairs $18,200 bill.
Yep i feel her pain too. You have to let the Lord handle it. God all ways fixes everything. I know she is up set over this. Companies like this should not be in business messing over good people.
@@lefty5463 god fixes it? Which god and this supposed god caused the problem in the first place. How stupid do you sound? Praying for her will do nothing.
That attorney gave great advice. She needs to know she had nothing to do with why she is losing power. She is owed big time especially after putting her through the amount of stressed they’ve put her through already
This is the USA. She wont be able to afford the lawyer. The business and the association will be able to write most, if not all, their lawyer fees off...and then religious folk will turn their hate on anyone that made that business spend more money. GREED is KING in the USA.
Thats not an $18k repair , thats like a $700 hammer , or a $1200 toilet seat . Thats one hole for a hydro-excavator ($1000)& 2hours max + backfill dirt
@@guysumpthin2974 you didn't hear the "grandfathered" part did you? As in, she couldn't get the needed repair unless she upgraded something...most likely her electrical system in her house. Listening, its a waste of time, right? Or maybe it the NEW WORLD ORDER, or maybe the liberals, or maybe aliens....THEY are keeping secrets from us.
This almost exact same thing happened to us years ago. The county water district was digging in our back yard and barely swiped our power line. 3 months later it popped. I ended up getting written and signed letters from 3 different master electricians saying that in their opinion the water district caused the issue. I sent them a copy of all three of the letters. Their insurance had to cover the repair as they had no leg to stand on. Sometimes you get adjusters to think you will just go away and then you have to go get an attorney. I've had to do this before in a different case. Get an attorney to write a letter saying they are representing you and plan to file legal action against them if this is not resolved in the next 7 days. Usually you have to pay the attorney like $250 for the letter. They send it to them certified so they have to sign for it. I guarantee you that will get their attention. Also I would call and speak to the adjusters supervisor and tell them, "I'm not going away, your client damaged this, and you are going to reimburse me or I am going to sue you in court and then attorney fees, and additional money for my time and headache will be added in addition to the repair cost".
@guy sumpthin Did you not hear the part where for them to do work on her lines they are legally required to replace her entire electrical system to bring it up to code. They cant just patch the line they now need to retrofit her entire house.
This is a case where a lawyer is absolutely needed. Name and shame every company involved too; contractor, subs, and the insurance company that denied the claim.
that is true - the names of the contractor, insurance company and Neighborhood Association should have been fully exposed ! ~ that is the only way to get justice nowdays by creating a PR nightmare for them. Immediately report that contractor to the contractors board and file complaints with the state and feds against the insurance company itself - their are several oversight agencies they answer too.
Back in 2007, during my time working in real estate, I witnessed people purchasing newly built homes from builders with the plan to sell them before the closing of escrow to another buyer for a profit. The crash hit hard and fast, and I vividly recall many of these units ending up foreclosed upon, with the builder's plastic still covering the carpets.
I get such worries too. I'm 50 and retiring early. Already worried of the future and where its headed, especially in terms of finances and how to get by. I'm also considering making my first investment in the stock market, but how can I do so given that the market has been in a mess for the majority of the year?
@@izagdlife Consider investing in stocks especially during a recession . While recessions can be tough, they can also offer good chances to buy low and sell high in the markets if you're cautious. Just remember, this is not financial advice, but it's a good time to think about buying stocks since having cash on hand isn't always the best option.
@@izagdlife Understanding your financial needs and making effective decisions is very essential. If I could advise you, you should seek the help of a financial advisor. For the record, working with one has been the best for my finances...
@@izagdlife *Mr Gary Mason Brooks* is the licensed advisor I use. Just research the name. You’d find necessary details to work with a correspondence to set up an appointment.
@@puppergump4117 The national mainstream media only go after drama and will lie directly, or lie by omission. They are threat #1 to our national security. China would be #2
Because it extends far beyond repairing the damage. Bringing her house up to code isn't relevant to the power line coming in whatsoever. The pictured invoice is strictly plumbing related and absolutely nothing to do with that specific powerline.
Happened to me years ago. My neighbor refused to take responsibility so I called my insurance company and my insurance company paid for it and asked me for my neighbor's address. I had to pay $500 deductible and I got a new line and a year later I got my $500 deductible back from the insurance company because they investigated and found out my neighbors insurance company and sued THEM and they got their money from his insurance company. If you have insurance your company will pay for it.
@teax25 unless you just don't have insurance this is exactly what will happen. You pay for insurance for a reason they will cover you and deal with getting their money back themselves with their crazy team of lawyers. Once you've payed your deductible it's completely out of your hands
She was lied-to by the electrical contractor. The only things needing to be "brought up to code" would be the things actively being worked on. The service entrance and service entrance conductors.
@@joey-mp3qc not on the service entrance. This would be the conductors coming in to her meter outside of her house. There's no reason the contractor should have even had to go into her house.
@@dpeters9897 This. Fix the line outside, everything will work again inside. Following their logic, every time they turn off power for maintenance, everyone in the neighborhood affected would need to update their homes?
Months?! They only respond when they've been exposed. Can you imagine if a municipality or in this case, the trail association, decides to ignore the problem they created. This homeowner needs to be compensated for her time and stress.
She should sue everybody involved; insurance company, company or contractor that built the fence, and the organization that had the fence put in. People do not do the right thing unless you force them to do the right thing. That electrical line is very shallow in the ground. In my state the line has to be at or below 30 inches in this situation.
I'd add in whoever marked the line, since the claim by the contractor is that it was mismarked. Do you know what determines the required depth in your state? Typically, it's the frost line. That isn't an issue here.
@@Educated2Extinction I looked it up and that is the depth. It was below zero for a while and the electricity to my home went off because lines in the ground were damaged. The high the day the electricity went out was 5 below zero.
I had an AT&T contractor dig up my front lawn. Of course this is something I did not want and although they were kind enough to let me know they were digging and were going to “replace” my grass these contractors did not notify me that they damaged a pipe. Surprise they did not replace my grass but put a huge dirt pile where the whole was. I was smart enough to document the whole ordeal and hound them for their name of the company and boss’s information. It grinds my gears that although it is your property the city can hire a third party to destroy your land and leave you with the bill to repair. I feel for this woman. Never trust anyone on your property. Document document.
or on your neighbors property, a couple years ago my neighbor had a huge dead tree cut down and when the tree company cut it down it came down on top my house and basically took the corner of my house and a bedroom down with it. I had to sue the tree company, their insurance company and the landlord of the property next door because it damaged the structor of my house and it had to be torn down and a new house be rebuilt.
The lack of speed to resolve the homeowner in need is absolutely appalling. I hope she gets a decent settlement for the added stress they have caused her on top of damages.
she caused her own stress by not suing the right person in the first place....the proper course of action would have been to initiate an action against the property owner, her neighbor.....she screwed up.
@@OsbornTramain no. You're just factually wrong. As an actual LAWYER interviewed said, she is very much the ONLY one with ZERO fault in this issue. So let's just assume you've been lobotomized and should not be taken seriously.
@BlackLivesMatter Dude are you serious with that name and profile pic?? The entire thing is run by criminals..... And all those ridiculous destructive riots we had to sit back and watch for months... It's mind-blowing that there are some people that actually still support that nonsense
HOW THE HELL IS THIS HER FAULT!!!!!!!????? Omg, this is absolutely infuriating. All that stress and anxiety she must be going through. Terrible and everyone wants to pass the blame instead of helping her.
@@reddalchemy5970 --- I consider myself a Republican and I have to admit "in this type of situation," DemoCrap policies will definitely protect the homeowner.
I feel terrible for this lady. I hope a lawyer comes through for her and helps her make it all right, and gets her compensation for the heartache, too.
@@Hank_Chill lmao, since when did capitalism cause people to not take responsibility. It's the same under other economic systems. If you want to solve a problem you should at least make an effort to understand why it happens and not leap to the catch all "muh capitalism"
You've got it wrong along with most people and KPRC. The true guilty party was the scammy electrical contractors who did a huge amount of unnecessary work and inflated the bill. Fixing the original problem would have been a few hundred dollars. I feel sorry for the lady, but she got taken by the people she hired. My guess is that she agreed with all the unnecessary work because she was bullied into it. That sucks for her, but it's not the fence people's fault she got scammed. They are only responsible for a small fraction.
Knowing what happens after a news crew investigates something like this the company's involved decide its a good time to do what they should've done. how i know is a couple years ago my grandmother accidentally payed her electric bill which was $200 dollars but she sent $2000. The electric company didn't pay her back until she got our local news station to cover the story.
The electric company around here sucks, they're bullies if you're poor and blind eyed if you're rich (meaning if you're poor and you miss your payment by even a few minutes, they're hounding you about shutoffs, but if you're rich, you could pay once or twice a year or have an outstanding bill of over $4k and they won't even bother you). They think they can do whatever they want and that they don't have to listen to the PUC. Water company's the same.
At a minimum, they should have credited the account for $2,000, then not expect a payment until the credit is exhausted. Taking $2,000 and crediting her $200 is outright theft.
That's ridiculous. She didn't even do anything and yet she got stuck with the bill. If these companies don't rescind that bill, I hope that she sues them and get a big payload from them.
@@AbBc-w4q most likely for all the stress and time she had to spend trying to resolve the issue. She did have to finance the bill so having to find the bank and then taking the loan out would be more money being taken out of her pocket that she didn’t have due to interest.
@@fightnightfrmdao3277 courts rarely pay out for pain and suffering in small claims courts. Shed be lucky if she got anything more than it cost her. Also, I dont feel what she has gone through with these clowns is actual "pain and suffering"... it's stress and anger but not pain and suffering
@@AbBc-w4q It wouldn't be small claims court as the cost is more than $10k. On top of that, she had to finance the amount and if she had a high interest rate, she would be paying more than what was loaned. Additionally, does she have AC or heat? Can she take a hot shower? will her stove or oven work? then there is the cost of the food she lost as well due to the power outage which on top of stress would add to emotional distress.
The woman was too poor to afford the 18k repair and had to take a loan. She probably thought lawyers will cost money, and she isn't confident in her case so I can understand why she would not seek legal help and ask the news instead because anything that costs money is scaring her away. I think for this reason it's important to educate yourself on the laws if you cannot afford a lawyer and know your basic rights or you will end up in a situation like this woman because you don't know how to find the right people to fix the issue and let it get to this point.
@@benw4361 lol everyone on the internet always saying "get a lawyer and sue etc" but lawyers cost a lot of money and time and nothing is ever guaranteed to go in your favour.
People like you make it sound like it is so easy to go through a lawsuit rofl.... it takes a lot of time and you are still risking your money. There is no guarantee of a victory, and if she loses she will have lost A LOT more than 18k. Not to mention the time they take is absolutely insane. If she has to work full time, has family duties and would need to worry about a lawsuit? Good luck with that... there is a reason it is the last resort.
She could meet with some, depending on the state if referred to a lawyer by the state bar association they override the consultation cost and use a flat fee instead. Some lawyers don't charge if you lose, or a lawyer might take the case pro bono or can also sue for attorney fees.
@cadavher so true. People think civil lawsuits are easy to do because of propaganda made by companies themselves to make it seem like Americans just do frivolous lawsuits all the time. In reality, it's expensive, time consuming, and requires finding a lawyer that cares enough to take a case on contingency
No its not. Not when the company that is supposed to mark the line did not do so correctly. All 3 will point fingers at each other, between the Contractor, Who paid to install fence, and the Co. that is SUPPOSED to mark utilities. I have done this repair and when the finger pointing starts, money is spent. NO way it could cost $!8,000. to do 2 splices on that line.
@@tedhardulak7698 That's right, two splices in a line would not cost $18,000. But bringing the house's old electrical up to code because of liabilities would.
She just needs to sue both these companies for several hundred thousand dollars, starting. That will cover any possible confusion or bills they refuse to pay.
This is the United States of America. Contractor makes a mistake? You can't afford a lawyer? F you. Somebody damages your property? You can't afford a lawyer? F you. Somebody cheated you? You can't afford a lawyer? F you. Somebody violates a contract? You can't afford a lawyer? F you. Somebody sells you something that doesn't work? You can't afford a lawyer? F you. Somebody breaks a contract? You can't afford a lawyer? F you. In America you get as much justice as you can afford, so if you can't afford a lawyer then F you.
Not sure I would be so quick to name and blame the insurance company, but the company responsible for the damages are at fault regardless of whatever plan they agreed to with their insurance. Keep in mind not every company goes with a premium insurance plan even though they should. Bare minimum plans will get you bare minimum results.
That all depends. If the 811 marks were in fact off by a significant amount, i think 18 inches on either side, then the company that marked the utilities is responsible.
Wow. I’m an electrician and there is just no excuse for such reckless work. If the two companies are playing the blame game then she should absolutely take them to court. A licensed electrician does need to legally bring her electrical up to code once they pull a permit but she should 100% NOT be the one paying. I wish I could help that poor woman.
Bro, were you born yesterday? This is the USA. First we blame her for not having a better job to afford the 18k or the lawyer. Second, we talk about how hard it is for companies to make any money. Third, lets blame the poor and homeless for any and all problems we have. Fourth, lets watch some large men run around in rectangles juggling a ball in different forms, and marvel at their abilities that justify the 8 figure salary. Fifth, this has something to do with the gays, the trannies, and whatever else my pastor said. Sixth, lets join a white nationalist group...oh, have we asked her if she is armed, and let her know that only good guys protect us from bad guys?
I agree. The exterior transformer is very close to that fence. I guarantee you I would have tried to find a way to not put a post that close to that box. You know there has to be a cable coming out of there going to the house. I don't care what dig safe marked. You can see the transformer.
@@は私です彼の名前 no, but the house shouldn't have to be updated anyways, the damage was between the transformer and the service meters, the inside of the house shouldn't have even have been looked at as part of the scope of the work.
The "whole house has to come up to code" bit seems quite a bit sketchy to me. Not sure what the laws are there, but when I got solar put on top of my house the only things that needed to be brought up to code was grounding rods for the breaker panel and hot and cold water pipes electrically bonded. Even so $18k to do a house rewire? Did she shop around at all?
lol, not one person on this whole comments section listened when she quietly told us her house is knob and tube, that's why it's $18K, the line in is probably $3K, changing the fuse box, fishing line through the walls for a few days and $75 a pop for new outlets times 20 lets say and viola, you're at $18 grand quick. Been there done that and did my own work, my neighbor paid $10K just to have her 18x12 living room rewired from knob and tube and 15 recessed lighting pots in our circa 1915 homes. Hell that old green box in her back yard is from the 70s. She's pulling everyone's legs to get sympathy, her fault she's not up to code inside and insurance isn't covering it. It you ever owned an old home you would know all of this.
It's so sad that so many people are struggling these days just to make ends meet; including myself. You never really know what anyone is going through and that's one of the reasons you should treat others nicely. Times are HARD especially with inflation. You can hear the anxiety and sorrow in her voice 😔
I've renovated and flipped over 700 homes in the last 30 years and am qualified to state that what's being presented is something I've never encountered. In my experience, counties / cities don't require that a house must be brought up to current code unless the home is being extensively renovated. If the permitting office determines that the improvement will constitute more than 50%+ of the house is being updated, they then require full compliance with current code, but NOT for anything less than that. Typically, if a wall is opened, whatever is exposed in THAT wall and that wall alone must be brought up to code, not the entire house, so exposed plumbing, electrical, etc. must meet the current IRC. You can see in her "estimate" that it includes her plumbing including faucets. If I had to guess, she's hoping to get the contractor who knicked the service entrance cable on the edge of her property line to pay to bring her entire house up to 2021 IRC, when that repair would run a couple thousand at most and she wouldn't need to pay for that. This could also be due to the contractor leading her to that belief or perhaps they believe that to be the case. In any event, the contractor who damaged the cable is NEVER going to pay for her to update the electrical and plumbing for her entire house unless they decide it's cheaper than a court case.
Depends on the municipality. My dad had hail damage on his roof 10 years ago. The storm was pretty significant. At the time the circa 1959 house had an open plank roof deck. If you were in the attic you could see the underside of the bottom layer of wood shingles. His insurance had to pay to fully deck the roof with plywood and install a radiant barrier because local building codes would no longer permit the open plank deck (the last time the roof was redone it was grandfathered in back in the 90's). Roofer could have also just wanted a big fat payday and make an insurance company pay for it.
@@JaredJanhsen Yes, because the roof plank was exposed by the storm, the county required that it be brought up to code, they consider roof sheathing to be a structural component and they want plywood now. Just like if I have a crew remove drywall in a room or basement, they require everything behind the drywall be brought up to code, plumbing, electric, framing, insulation, all of it. With the roof, it's a little weird, because you can replace the shingles and keep the planking or keep the plywood if it's intact, without a permit, but if there's damage to either, it technically requires a permit and with planking I guess they wanted that updated to code. We normally pull all permits, but a roof permit to replace warped plywood is a permit we don't pull. However, in the case of the woman in this story, the issue is with a service entrance cable line beneath a fence on her property line. The county would require that the new service entrance cable be up to code, but the service entrance cable enters the meter and that's where that would end, not inside the house. In 30 years, doing renovations in 10 counties in 2 states, I've had MANY service entrance cables replaced and not once was there any requirement to bring the existing structure, electrical or plumbing up to code. Her estimate even included bathroom vanities, that's not an inspection item, but the plumbing to the vanity is.
I am an electrical inspector you don’t need to bring the entire house up to code. The service line is owed by the utility company they will fix it themselves once notified this story is a misleading
@@DVankeuren Many lawyers will take cases on a contengency basis. If they think the case is strong enough, they build their cost into the lawsuit and its 0 out of pocket until the case is decided. If won the plantiff pays nothing. (Some states even have laws where civil suit loser pays winner's fees.)
@@someone-ji2zb "And if she loses.... GG" -- Well, for starters, "Oh, would you look at that, the fence got hit by lightning and burned to the ground!!"
18k should be a big amount to anyone... most people couldn't afford to pay for this, myself included. This lady is struggling like the rest of us, big companies need to stop screwing innocent people 😡
What?!? This country was built on the rich and powerful screwing over innocent people. Why should that change now? A few people pull all the strings and that gap is getting wider and wider, just how they like it.
@Mr Wiggins she took out a loan for 18k for a mistake that had nothing do with her.. Her neighbor hired a contractor to rebuild a fence. The contractor that the neighbor hired "accidentally" cut the electrical line to her house.. which whether or not it was an accident they still did the damage caused but doesn't want to pay to fix it. She is barely getting by as it is. Now she had to take a 18k loan out to fix this mistake made by a company she didn't hire which she made very clear she cant afford for to pay in the video you apparently watched since your commenting on a comment left on the this video. So how is she not being screwed?
The trail association and contractors should be 100% liable for the damages. The first thing I'd check is to see if they had an underground surveyor come out to check and mark any underground wires and pipes - something that is required before any digging.
The real insanity is in code enforcement. In a reasonable world this could be repaired for a few hundred dollars. But instead lets rewire an entire house.
it's the company she hired that is ripping her off from what the paper shown in the story. Lot's of plumbing fixtures being inspected and possible replaced
THIS is why I'm glad I live where I do! we dont have this kind of bullchit here, I added a room on the back of my house in 2007, the permit was $5, I did a simple sketch on notepaper and it was approved and i did ALL the work myself, there was no bullchit inspectors or anything else involved. Here the state law now is homeowners can do their own electrical work without a license, all they need is a permit and inspection. I had the very OLD incoming power line replaced along with the meter socket and weatherhead to my self installed 200 amp panel in the basement, local master electrician I know had to do that as they had to cut power at the pole etc the inspector didnt even look at anything more than the weatherhead and meter socket briefly from his vehicle and left
@@jameskitzmann6268 Yeah all that crap is ridiculous! washing machine hoses and her toilets??? I'm so happy we dont have this bullchit here!!! my toilet has a 3 gallon flush and none of my faucets have restrictors- I took them all out. I PAY for my water and I don't CARE how much I use when I'm paying for it!
@@WhistlesToAnimals It's like that in most advanced countries. It's how we gradually reduce house fires and other devastating effects of old wiring. The countries which don't have such laws are the ones where you see headlines like "Cambodia casino fire: At least 19 dead".
2 things caught my attention, they said they were not responsible for damage due to line not being marked, here in virginia your not supposed to excavate without having it marked by the utility company and are still supposed dig carfully 5 ' around the lines. also if the service on the house is not damaged you sould not have to upgrade to new NEC code
This is the type of issue Civil Cases are meant to solve. She needs an attorney. The settlement would include the costs of the attorney. I bet some would take her case on contingency. If not some outlandish lawsuit, it's likely it would be settled before making it to court.
Correct. There are many lawyers who live for this very type of case and will probably do it on contingency just because how much fun it will be for them alone.
I feel bad for this lady and I hope she finds peace. Sometimes jurisdictions and some types of cases do not allow recovery of attorney costs - what you are suggesting may not be possible. There are earlier posts that describe these limitations.
Marking out lines is the responsibility of the utility company but only if they were actually called and marked things out- unlikely since the "fence company" ALSO installed the fence backwards, the "good" side is required to face her property. She should probably also get a surveyor to see if that whole mess is even on her property. But, yes she needs a lawyer- or The Equalizer.
My girlfriend and I had a similar experience with fence contractors in Illinois who left my neighbors' fences in shambles with no explanation as to why, and had to come out multiple times to fix everything after weeks of delays. Never deal with Peerless Fence. They are so inept and incompetent, I can't believe they're still in business. As someone who works in the trades, it pisses me off on a personal level. A lot of these fence contractors take no pride in their work, and have no clue what they're doing.
In between property law and insurance technicalities, this stuff is mind-boggling. I feel for the lady who took the financial fall for someone else's huge f-up.
Hey you can't blame a dictator...seems to be the freedom and justice we purchased. GREED always wins. She didn't have the 18k. She wont have the money to retain a lawyer. She will have to depend on 'pro bono' work, or she will have to pre-arrange to hand over a significant amount of any financial judgement in her favor.
It's the fence companies insurance that didn't cover the damage the fence company did. The fence company is still liable for the damage even if their insurance doesn't pay. She should have gone through her own insurance company and let them get the money back from the fence company. That's why you have insurance.
This is such a rip off. I work for a utility company and install and replace services to homes daily. All they have to do is install a jbox on her side of the fence past the bad spot in the cables. Then they will run a new sweep into that green transformer. The only new wire is going to be from the jbox to the transformer, they don't have to replace the wire to her electeical panel therefore the panel does not need to be brought up to current code. These contractors are theives! That's not an $18,000.00 dollar job. They can run a temp cable out of the transformer to her panel and she will only see about a 15 minute power outage when they begin the repair , and about the same during the final hook up. There are so many dishonest contractors out there
The story names the trail association but not the insurance company or the fence company. You should name them all so customers can avoid doing business with them and then see how fast the fence company steps up and helps her.
Yes.... I agree. I'm a landscaper... riight there wiith that box within 3 feet, I would have been diggind VERY softly and carefully by hand, that particular hole... with a TROWEL, if necesssary.
Nooo I don't think that would be a good idea at this point. Defamation has a way of coming back hard. I think she has a good law suit maybe a local attorney will see this and pick up the case for a chunk of the settlement.
@@jayf8308 What defamation, it’s giving out all information and letting the viewer decide what they can do with it. Defamation is when you explicitly say that they are a bad company. News is suppose to be unbiased, and that’s how they reported it here.
this happens all the time all over the country a landscaper or construction crew call up diggers hotline and you get one of two people type A shows up on time and physically tracks each utility one by one type B shows up late looks for the utility service shut off and acts like they are tracking its location when in reality they are using experience and county codes to guess where it "should be" instead of where it actually is.
years ago my wife and i built our home and where we lived we had a well for water as did the rest of the homes in the subdivision. a lot across the street from us was bought and a house put in. At some point during the build of that house they had someone come in and put a well in. they used an unlicensed well driller who according to our well driller ("blew out the bottom of our well" )with his equipment (using pressurized air which was a no no in our area. We literally had mud in our water lines, mud in the toilets and our well guy had to drop another 100 feet of well pipe to fix our well. The contractor tried to avoid me but i finally caught up with him. He initially told me to take a hike but i had checked with the state codes for well drilling and informed him that he and the well driller were in violation of state drilling codes (using an unlicensed well driller to boot) and if they did not pay for my well fix and clean up i would hire an attorney and would "unfortunately need to report this incident to the appropriate state government entity for resolution". lets just say he could not write the check fast enough and his attitude took a remarkably more humble and apologetic tone.
Trail associations and any where the public can go without supervision has to have massive liability insurance policies. Sue the crap out of them with lawyers fees included.
she needs to find a lawyer that will take on this case for free (for 40% of the settlement or whatever) and sue the crap out of the fence company and trail association.
@@Khobai Last I knew it was 30% for normal lawsuits and 40% for pharmaceutical cases. Something changed I guess. Luxury homes and vacation homes in prestigious places don't grow on trees you know.
In the face of this unfortunate situation, I hope that the homeowner receives the support and resolution she deserves. It's crucial that we continue to raise awareness about such issues, advocate for consumer protection measures, and encourage transparency and accountability within the contracting industry. No homeowner should have to bear the burden of someone else's mistake without any recourse for assistance.
The responsible party is the one who hired the contractor to do the work. It's sad and unfortunate that people don't do the right thing by others. Of course her insurance is not going to pay this and understandably so. It's clear who hired the contractor company and they should pay up and pay up ASAP. They should just admit that they hired a horrible contracting company with unprofessional workers who did a lousy job. We should be privy to the name of the contractors company so that we not use them.
Knowing the name of the company is kinda useless, like blocking a phone number, as they can just spoof another number & call you right back. They can just file a new business license, they'll be right back in business & nobody will know.
I think it's right that they didn't name and shame the contractors in this situation -- what if they were right and the utilities hadn't been marked correctly? This homeowner needs to sue the trail association, whose insurance should pay her back, and then their insurance can decide to go after the contractor if they want to.
@@MM-jf1me It's not to shame the company, if Criminals can be spread all over screens and made known to the public, why not business companies who point the finger and not want to be held accountable for possible errors on their part? We can agree in that this lady should not be stuck with the Bill and the parties involved will drag this out as long as they can, unfortunately, some are lovers of 💰 instead of lovers of humans.
2:51 If the company responsible for locating cables in your area did not accurately mark them, then the utility company that marks for the 811 system must be held accountable. If you require assistance, you can contact the Common Ground Alliance for help. The Common Ground Alliance (CGA) does not provide direct assistance for damage to your property, but it can provide resources and information to help you address the situation.
Considering how close that transferee box was to the fence I hope that it was mark. I use to do markings and that would have been marked for sure. Hopefully the marking company kept photos of the job
@@joemuscato811 If a fence company is working near a utility box (transformer) and notices no markings indicating its presence, they should have contacted 811 and requested the electric company to return and mark their infrastructure. Whenever working in the vicinity of a utility box (transformer), contractors should be aware that it must be hand-dug with a distance of 2 feet on each side. Therefore, in my perspective, if the utility box was not marked, the responsibility for any liabilities should lie with the contractor.
@@811chicago5 I have about 36 years in a utility company. Probably 3 years cumulative in ditches splicing cable that was dug up. Since the 811 program was instituted, once a mark is called for, the locators have X amount of working days to mark it. If they dont, then you can dig. A line hit is the locators responsibility. If the locator mismarks the line, then it is the locators responsibility. That said, the responsibility falls first on the trail asso. They are ultimately liable. They can then go after whomever they want to, but its not up to the harmed party who did not contract any work.
@@reachandler3655 well the fence guy should have been insured but if there claim was denied them she goes after the 1 that hired them from a Contractors view not just someone making a comment ;)
She got scammed. The issue is between the power company and the folks that damaged the line. Any problem from the meter out, unless she caused it, is for the power company to address. Zero reason for any inspection or work on her side of the meter.
Shame on them! This is just horrible. No one wants to take the blame, so typical. Lady, I'm praying that God grants you the favor needed to get this resolved without you owing anything, including the financed amount. Only God can bring justice when guilty parties won't. Take courage!
It'd be cool if a god cursed the people directly responsible for this mess and they had tons of bad luck and suffered terrible illnesses until they finally coughed up the dough.
When you hire a contractor you should always get a copy of their certificate of insurance naming you as the insured party. Then when this happens, you just file a claim on the cert. I have seen contractors who try to refuse claims because they don't want their rates to go up but if you have the cert you can go around them. The HOA should have a copy of the cert, unless they were negligent in managing the project.
The same happened here in 2019. Over $70,000. I did contact 2 news, but was never contacted back. My insurance paid most, but not all. Everything was settled and NDA, but I am still out over $20k. Two and a half years to get power fully restored to my house. Power cables - Romex was burnt and at some points melted. No help from PUC either. You're on your own in this state.
Sad part is that "passing the buck" is the always the first action when companies screw up. Meanwhile folks like this poor lady have to suffer the consequences of some else's mistakes. It's not right and takes WAY too long for resolution. 😡
Actually the sad part is that you believe a dangerous myth like that (and with all due respect, good luck proving me wrong on that) The smaller the business, the more offensive your comment is. Fact: small businesses have a lot to lose, and can literally be afraid of NOT making things right, since that could mean the end of the business is a way that it can't for a huge corporation. You have to be in quite a bubble of bigotry to think that it's "always the first action". I worked for a moving company that sold a basic insurance plan, but the secret was that everyone actually got it, because even though we weren't required to by law, we didn't feel comfortable leaving people hanging if we had damaged something. That's a moving company. Think about that. You know the stereotypes about movers. So many other stories too, and I'm sure you have plenty of stories yourself. I don't understand why people turn off their brains like that. Were you just being very hyperbolic and I took you too seriously?
@@awesomeferret None of what you said is remotely true. No business is desperate to help people. The worst thing that could possibly happen to them for not making things right? They get sued and have to do it anyway. That's it. There is no penalty for stalling.
@@TheHauntedKiwi you're actually lying, wow. All of it is true. Do you think I made up that story about the moving company? Why the heck do you think you have authority to say something like "none of that is remotely true"? Time for you to come out from the basement and actually go to a small business. I have worked for many small businesses and some of them I've been friends with the owners. You're basically trying to tell me the earth is flat here. I already gave you a dramatic example, and you're still going to try and tell me that circles aren't round that that obvious reality isn't reality. For the sake of your credibility, I hope you're just having a bad day and didn't read my comment properly or something. It's undeniable: you have to be either a shut-in who hasn't come out of their house in a decade, or an outright bigot to stand behind the words you said. Shameful. If you won't believe people when they tell you that things are better than you thought they were, how will you ever know if things have improved if you just put your fingers in your ears and say absurd things like "none of what you said is remotely true"? Why is it so important to you to believe that I was lying about the moving company story? Amazing.
It is 100% a lie that they cant just replace the line to her meter. They did not have to upgrade anything else. Any electrician can replace the damage line as-is to the working meter. The HOA owes the money to fix the problem, they can go after the contractor.
I pray nothing like this ever happens to me. Don't understand how these people deal with getting bent over by the city like this. You'd see me on the nightly news and I'd be going to prison for not thinking before I act.
I'm not sure what i'd do if i couldn't afford a lawyer but given that i can, i would be seeking a halt of activity on the company until the issue has been solved
@MplsMark live in fear if you want. Fearing a situation like this one in particular is like worrying about being randomly struck by lightning, in my opinion. One of the big factors that made this situation possible or at least why it's such a mess is that her property is up against public* land owned by a weird non profit or some other type of group. Most people don't live in that situation. This is the internet. If you can't handle others opinions I wouldn't post. Sorry if this is somehow offensive to you.
That cable isn't even homeowners responsibility... it's on the power company side of the meter. And 18,000 to bring a home up to code is highway robbery- there isn't that much code that has changed in the last 50 years. We just bid a "bring up to code" on a 100 year old house that included ripping out every bit of wiring and replacing every inch and it was only $20k
She needs to find a good lawyer. I had a similar situation but mine was not as serious. AT&T was installing fiber lines underground. I already had it but they were expanding. They cut my fiber line and my internet was out for like a day or 2. They did come to my door to tell me what had happened and when they would fix it.
That's a service line. 811 doesn't mark service lines. They would have only marked the utility line from the pole to the electric box. From the box to the house (service) doesn't get marked.
That takes money and many months(maybe years) to even get to court. Most people don't have the money to afford a lawyer and the court fees involved. Even if you win. you still cannot get pay back all costs associated with your case so there is still some loss to you regardless.
She needs to get a lawyer and sue. Companies will only pay when they have to--that is the rule of insurance companies. I have a friend who lost their house in Hurricane Katrina and she had insurance, but the company tried not to pay. Lawyer up, girl--ask for the $18K, plus lawyer and court fees. Lawyers in cases like this will only make you pay if you WIN. You lose, they lose, so sue the insurance company.
That takes money and many months(maybe years) to even get to court. Most people don't have the money to afford a lawyer and the court fees involved. Even if you win. you still cannot get pay back all costs associated with your case so there is still some loss to you regardless.
@@brianhaflin9799 If it's a liability case, as I said in my comment, then most lawyers will pay those things and hope to either win or settle. Suing is very difficult, but it sounds like she has a good case that a lawyer might want to invest in.
I worked for an electrical contractor while in college, I learned one major thing while working there. Getting the new wire it takes to get a house up to code is a major improvement to a persons home. Sooner or later the insurance company will no longer insure ur home due to the outdated wire and the chances ur home could have a electrical fire which could turn out to be deadly.
When I bought my house 30 years ago the mortgage company required an upgrade to 100 amp service so we had the old 4 circuit *fuse* box replaced with a 200 amp panel for 40 breakers. Neither they or my insurance company said anything at all about upgrading the household wiring. The mortgage company probably didn't care because their interest was in reselling the house if they had to foreclose, and didn't really care if it burned down (or I got electrocuted). As far as I know my insurance company doesn't know anything at all about the electrical upgrades (or any other upgrades) I've done.
@@suedenim9208 30 years ago seeing 2 wire in a house was completely normal, even fuse panels were pretty common 30 years ago and even today still, the only wiring that isn’t safe is knob and tube and aluminum. The only thing they care about is getting the box changed and maybe arc fault breakers.
Same here in Australia when my parents decided to sell up and move to the Outback, the house the were buying had not had the correct cutoff switch installed even though the sell stated it had been done, when they hired an electrician to add two new power rings to the house he came out to check on the box and found nothing had been done, when he was told by my parents as to what the old owner had told them he told my parents that the woman had lied through her teeth, he should know he is the ONLY qualified electrocution in the town of 600 people and he never got the job and if she had tried to hire an out of town contractor, they would have contacted him as he was the local authorised election to work with the electric supplier to put in the safety switch. He drew up two bills for my parents, one for the work for which they hired him for and one for the past owner for the work she should have had done by law. My parents also got the guy to strip out all of the old wiring and to replace it as they felt they could not trust there not to be an issue later. They were glad they had done this as non of the existing wiring was in fact up-to code, they met the son of the original builder of the this house and the one next to it, his Dad and Uncle had built both homes and also did the basic wiring back in the early 50’s. The local electrician stated the wiring looked to have been a owner/builder job as it was very basic with no safety systems in place. One thing with living in a small community you can always find someone who knew someone who worked on something and Ben was lucky to find the old guy who worked with the brothers to build both houses and was able to talk to him. The up side to it all was that the person who sold the house to my parents had to pay for 70% of the job that had to be done to bring the house up-to code like she was meant to have done in the first place. They only had to pay for the 2 new rings that they wanted added to the current system. My parents were the 4th owners of the house, because of its small ownership of the property it was easy to check on its history. I am now the 5th owner of the house and very thankful that my parents were sticklers for getting the job done right the first time round.
Not how insuring works. Unless it's a mandatory wire change stated by govt then the wiring is considered legal regardless of age. Know lots of houses businesses with original 1900 1910s wiring with lol cloth insulators and bar switches all insured. Lol in fact buddy that be pretty much the entire east coast and a lot of west cities like Chicago and even San Francisco still has a a load well over a third of buildings original wiring. Besides this was about wiring going into her house not what's inside else that be a much larger bill than 18k and be bills from renovators plus others. Lol to replace house wiring means ripping all the walls open in older places since wiring then usually like a spider web system with wires heavily glued down or nail staples in unlike plastic loop tags which will easily tear away if tugged. Just to wire a new house that size be around 25k lol to do a redo be like 40 k plus including renos
If you want to weed out the fly-by-night contractors when they show you their proof of insurance, ask them for their workman's comp policy also. Then you don't get stuck with a bill for someone getting hurt on your property also.
Better yet, the states department of labor should have all of a registered contractor's business information. You can and should look it up yourself before hiring a contractor
But she didnt HIRE these people, and insured or not she's still screwed by the county demanding code crap, she chose a lousy place to buy a house that's for sure!
News Flash, there has never been an age where people have done "the right thing". People have been screwing over other people for as long as there have been people.
It’s the fence companies fault. They are the ones required to have the electric company mark the lines. If the lines were marked incorrectly then it is the electric company’s fault. But seeing the pics it looks like the fence company should be responsible. The wiring should have been visible to them before they poured concrete on the wires.
