Real Estate Investor · Plymouth, WI · Member since 2013 · 28 posts · 10 votes
With all the news about lead in public water supplies, is anyone else concerned it may soon become the landlord's problem to deal with? I'm starting to wonder what happens if they find lead in the water coming into one (or all) of my properties. Would my landlord policy or umbrella cover me if I get sued for poisoning somebody's child? Guess I'll be calling the agent in the morning.
If the water is provided by somebody else, then it is always going to be their fault unless you have lead in your own plumbing. If you have a well you should test the water regularly.
lead (and other metals) typically enter the water from the water itself being to acidic and dissolving the lead from the existing plumbing, solder, and fixtures. I am not sure how the liability aspect would work. The court system will settle that. It will be interesting what comes out of the Flint issues. Many older areas of the country still use lead pipes so it is hard to prove who did what wrong, if you only recently purchased a 100 year old home and did not know what material the water line was. Or were never required to find out
So I spoke with my insurance agent today, and she had to make a few calls to come up with an answer. Keep in mind this is just one agent's opinion, so your mileage may vary.
Basically, the insurance industry considers any form of lead to be hazmat. Standard landlord policies and umbrellas don't provide any hazmat coverage, and it's apparently not possible to add it unless you move to a commercial policy (very expensive). So as a landlord, all you really can do is disclose the potential hazard to your tenants as soon as you become aware of it.