An Airbnb guest living the floor above my Airbnb guest caused a flood in their condo, which caused extensive damages to my condo.
I had to repair my unit, costing well over 20K. I had primary owner's insurance, but since doing Airbnb and not switching over to renter's insurance, they denied my claim unfortunately.
My question: If I were to sue the homeowner above me, can I recoup legal fees? A lawyer that was recommended by a friend said once I win, I can only recoup ~20% of the claim, which makes me want to reconsider a new lawyer.
In my experience, lawsuit that are at this dollar level just end up costing everyone more money than is awarded. I am sorry that you had damage to your unit.
Have you tried to contact the owner of the unit above yours? Just contacting them about your costs and asking them to open a claim on their insurance to cover them does not seem inappropriate to me.
I also do not think there is any risk in consulting a new lawyer though.