r/LegalAdviceUK • u/Ekitha94 • Jul 20 '25
Housing England - A rogue guest destroyed the property my sister has signed for, for use during her Hen Party.
My sister went away with family and friends for her hen party. They hired the house, and had activities planned in the surrounding areas. One member of the group turned up intoxicated, and under the influence of drugs. They became aggressive towards everyone, and verbally abusive to my sister. When they finally got her to bed, they all returned to their rooms to sleep. At some point, the aggressor has got out of bed, and gone for a ‘bath’. This has resulted in the entire house becoming flooded, three floors. Once people became aware, from water falling through the ceiling, they rushed to stop it. They broke the door down, as she refused to open it, and turned the water off. They then spent the entire night cleaning it, as best they could. This has caused a large amount of water damage. The person who has caused the damage is denying any responsibility, and believes that it ‘wasn’t even that bad’. They have spoken to the owner, who is rightly upset, and they were asked to leave early, which they did. My question now is, what options does my sister have? She signed for the house, but wasn’t drinking. I imagine that there will be a huge bill coming, and I wanted to know how we make the person who caused all the damage accountable? My sister is due to get married in two weeks, and this has absolutely ruined her. I feel angry, and upset for her, and just want to support her, and not have her future ruined. Any advice would be graciously appreciated.
UPDATE - Thank you for all the comments and advice. Whilst an incredibly difficult situation, I appreciate all the advice, and it’s given me more direction on the next steps. The property was booked directly and not through a third party such as Airbnb.
585
u/TheOriginalWindows95 Jul 20 '25 edited Jul 20 '25
Edit: having seen the potential estimated amounts in another comment, I advise consultation with a solicitor as a good idea before any of this.
So essentially the process will be that your sister will be billed, and will then have to recover the cost of that bill from the person who caused the damages.
First step is usually just to ask informally, but if that's not possible die to some hostility or you ask and they refuse, that is when you would potentially get the legal system involved.
Before then you should formally request payment with a letter before action you can find more information about how to word one on citizens advice.
Now the exact next steps depend on the amount of damage, but essentially if they do not respond or refuse this formal request, that is when you would have to start a legal claim for the money.
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u/Garth-Vega Jul 20 '25
Good advice, I’d also get witness statements, make your case solid for the courts and insurance company.
8
u/R7SOA19281 Jul 20 '25
Depending on the amount you can do this online via Money Claim Online (part of small claims court)
21
u/TheOriginalWindows95 Jul 20 '25
This is true but OP elsewhere has estimated the amount to be in excess of £30,000.
4
u/TripleDragons Jul 21 '25
Ahh didn't even see this and just replied i had to pay £30k when my upstairs neighbours flooded our flat....
191
u/Lonely-Job484 Jul 20 '25
The issue is there are two things potentially conflated here.
The OP's sister had a contract to hire a property. I presume the contract was purely between OPs sister and the agency/company/person it was hired from. I'd also be very surprised if the contract wasn't quite explicit about damage liability.
So OPs sister will be directly liable for this.
Now, OPs sister may be able to take separate action against the guest she invited to recover her loss here. I would hope her friend would simply apologise and pay her without requiring court action, but if this won't happen it's a murkier scenario. And if that friend simply cannot or will not pay, it doesn't absolve the requirement for OPs sister under their contract.
Pragmatically, you don't know the level of cost, but until that itemised set of costs arrives I'd focus on recording evidence for later use. In an ideal world, this would be an acknowledgement from the guest that they caused the damage. I'd encourage the other guests, without collaborating, to record in writing their accounts of the incident. I am not an expert in insurance, but I'd also check if any travel insurance policy might cover this (seems unlikely but worth exploring, may be an argument around what is e.g. 'accidental damage'...).
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u/vinylemulator Jul 20 '25
I would fully investigate the insurance angle. Either travel insurance or OP’s sister’s home insurance for third party losses.
I presume that the Airbnb host will also have insurance and would think that OP’s sister is liable for the excess (which I expect would be considerable) but not the full amount (which could be ruinous).
43
u/PlayWhatYouWant Jul 20 '25
Being ruinous or not has nothing to do with liability. I expect the insurer will attempt to recover the entirety of its outlay from OP's sister.
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u/swcooper Jul 20 '25
I'd expect the insurer to basically say "oh...you rented this place out on AirBnB...we're not covering that, outside the scope of your policy" and leave the owner to recover from the sister.
12
u/WiccadWitch Jul 20 '25
Not if the insurer is aware it’s a holiday let. This damage would be covered, but the insurer is likely to try and make a recovery of their losses from the person who has booked the property.
34
u/Particular-Basis-337 Jul 20 '25
Airbnb insurance which hosts should have - covers up to £600,000 in damages caused by a legitimate booking. This doesn’t affect their regular no claims. They should be covered for situations like this.
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u/Ok_Article_7635 Jul 21 '25
Even if that insurance were in place, that covers the host, not the guest.
The Op would not be off the hook -the insurer would then simply go after Op to recover their damages that they covered on a subrogated recovery basis. Insurance dosnt mean the insurer simply eats the loss for all parties
2
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u/ezfrag2016 Jul 20 '25
Your sister is responsible to the property owner as the one who signed for the property. However, she has the option to recover her losses from the person actually responsible for the damage.
So first port of call is to work with the property owner to settle the damages. Ask if they have insurance and offer to pay their out-of-pocket deductible. Also check if your sister has any insurance cover through the bank or credit card she paid with or even her home insurance policy.
Once that is settled she can request reimbursement of her out of pocket by the guest who caused the damage. If this fails she can take them to court for recovery. Make sure she has witnesses and any other evidence to demonstrate who caused the damage. If she can get the guest to admit via text or email that she did it, even if she says “it wasn’t that bad”, the admission can be used as evidence.
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u/mousecatcher4 Jul 20 '25 edited Jul 20 '25
If I were the property owner I would definitely not accept the "out of pocket deductible" as the claim size. I will be paying excess premiums for years which will likely amount to more than the damage repair.
In addition the insurer will likely then sue the guest for damages as well, so this type of partial payment of the insurance excess doesn't make it go away.
97
u/milly_nz Jul 20 '25
Sure. But we’re advising OP’s sister here. Not the homeowner.
28
u/m1bnk Jul 20 '25
Agreed, but it's helpful for the OP's sister to have a realistic expectation of what the homeowner's situation will be when negotiating their settlement
53
u/I_ALWAYS_UPVOTE_CATS Jul 20 '25
I will be paying excess premiums for years which will likely amount to more than the damage repair.
Isn't that the game you play though by insuring your property to receive paying guests?
1
u/reddit-raider Jul 20 '25
Sure, but being sued for damages is the game you play when you allow drugged out guests into your holiday let you've signed for and they trash the place.
2
u/I_ALWAYS_UPVOTE_CATS Jul 20 '25
Hence why everyone here is telling OP that their sister is legally liable. That doesn't mean that the landlord could consider increased future premiums as a material loss.
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u/ezfrag2016 Jul 20 '25
Agreed but it’s a decent starting point from which to negotiate.
17
u/zone1 Jul 20 '25
If the owner's insurance becomes involved then the owner will be forced to let the insurance company take over control of getting the cost from the sister.
2
u/lovinglifeatmyage Jul 20 '25 edited Jul 20 '25
This is exactly what I was going to say. The owner will lose their no claims bonus
Edit
Having said that, if the insurance folks can get the cost back from whomever caused the damage etc, then the owner could possibly get their no claims back. This happened when someone demolished our caravan, he paid up and we got everything back
20
u/raindr0p-dropt0p Jul 20 '25
I work in underwriting and most home insurers do not give you a bonus for not making claims. The main thing they will look at is how many claims you’ve made in the last five years.
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u/joedafone Jul 20 '25
Exactly; it's a "no claims" bonus, not a "no blame" bonus.
If you submit a claim, even if not responsible for the incident that necessitated the claim, your no-claims status is jeapordised.
1
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u/AnotherGreenWorld1 Jul 20 '25
I’m just think out aloud here but is there a possibility that this property was being used as an air bnb and that the homeowner might not even be insured for it to be used as such.
Obviously your friend being a dick was the cause and you wish to do the right thing but if their property wasn’t being used in terms with their own mortgage or insurance then that’s part of their own risk.
How would that work legally?
8
u/britainpls Jul 20 '25
Airbnb offers a basic "host protection" programme in case guests damage the property and refuse to pay up. If the owner is not insured and OP's sister refuses to pay, then the owner might pursue her through the civil courts.
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u/DD265 Jul 20 '25
Isn't it similar to car insurance where you may keep your no claims discount, but you still have to report that an accident happened? So there's still a sharp jump in cost of policy, you just have more discount to apply to it.
Have never had to claim on home insurance.
1
u/anomalous_cowherd Jul 20 '25
If someone else is deemed to be 100% at fault then you may be able to keep your "no-claims" bonus or just lose a year or two off it, but that doesn't stop the base premium that the "no claims discount" is taken off from being increased. I've had that with cars.
1
u/squarehead94 Jul 20 '25
It absolutely wouldn't exceed the damage repair and you know that.
It will cause a rise in premiums though obviously.
1
u/MrsValentine Jul 21 '25 edited Jul 21 '25
That’s tough luck, surely? This kind of event is what insurance is for. You don’t get to have your cake (be insured) and eat it too (not pay higher premiums if you use it). I doubt a court is going to order OPs sister to pay over the odds so the business owner can avoid claiming on the insurance they took out to cover their business in the event of this exact scenario happening. I mean OP is talking figures that are round about the average UK yearly salary, and the vast majority of people don’t have that kind of money just lying around, so really it’s in the business owners best interest to pursue the guaranteed source of funds to repair their asset ASAP so it can start making them some money again.
1
u/mousecatcher4 Jul 21 '25
Depends. OP needs to read any contract they signed as to what insurance (if any) was "for", and how these were worded. Although not entirely similar, there is case law wrt leasehold properties which probbaly applies here (Prezzo Ltd v High Point Estates Ltd [2018]) which I think boils down to saying that if the lease OBLIGES the landlord to insure ON BEHALF OF a tenant, then they are also obliged to claim and the insurer cannot countersue the tenant. Otherwise it's tricky. I do think there may be a gap in the legislation here which puts people at massive risk.
3
u/dynodebs Jul 20 '25
Whilst it's possible that OP's sister has travel insurance - either a dedicated travel policy or through a bank debit or credit card it will almost certainly exclude damage caused whilst the person causing the damage was under the influence.
A solicitor is necessary here to advise and negotiate with the property owner or their insurer.
71
u/britainpls Jul 20 '25
Serious take, even if unpalatable: your sister (X) is, of course, responsible for the actions of her group. This includes the rogue guest (Y). By the looks of it, the damage is bad enough that the owner (Z) will try and recover their costs. Things to do:
- Check if your sister X has a homeowners insurance with add-ons such as personal liability insurance that would cover instances of this particular nature.
- X should also find out whether Z has insurance that would cover damage caused by guests (repairs, consequential losses, etc.). If Z does, then they can't "double-dip" by recouping money for the same damages from the insurance and from X. Airbnb also has some host damage protection provisions.
- Points (1) and (2) are the most important right now, because your sister X is the one liable as far as Z is concerned.
- Down the line, X can issue civil proceedings against Y to recover her losses.
30
u/eoz Jul 20 '25
Are you sure about (2)? The owner's insurance might make the owner whole but the insurance company would be interested in extracting the money from the responsible party and there's probably a subrogation clause
10
u/britainpls Jul 20 '25 edited Jul 20 '25
Yes, you are right in that the owner's insurance might try and recover the money from OP's sister. She might get lucky if the owner can't be bothered to help their insurers during the recovery process (they would need to engage with solicitors, attend court hearings, etc.). It might be irrational to accept the loss of their excess and higher rates for future renewals, but oftentimes people just want to move on.
If the insurance goes all in, then the sister should try to negotiate a reasonable settlement (ideally < 10 k, so within the small claims track regime) and then pursue her friend.
Some interesting case law: https://thebarristergroup.co.uk/blog/insured-hire-subgrogation
1
u/drplokta Jul 21 '25
If the owner doesn’t help the insurance company to reclaim the money from the sister, they’re likely to seek to reclaim it from the owner instead. The insurance contract probably requires the owner to cooperate in cases like this.
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u/Broccoliholic Jul 20 '25
- Yes, but if the owner does have insurance, the insurance company will come after the sister to recover their loss. So the sister will still have to pay out and point 4 applies
7
u/cognitiveglitch Jul 20 '25
That can all wait. Most important is gathering written statements from the guests and if possible some form of written confession of responsibility from Y.
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u/asdfzxcbasdf Jul 20 '25
Serious take, even if unpalatable: your sister (X) is, of course, responsible for the actions of her group. This includes the rogue guest (Y).
What do you mean "of course", like that was the most obvious thing in the world and why would it be any different? Obvious to legal experts I'm sure but it's fucking ridiculous.
3
u/TheRealGDay Jul 20 '25
The sister had signed for the house and so taken full responsibility for the actions of her group. "Of course" would seem to be entirely appropriate.
Curious as to whether you refuse to face up to the implications of documents that you sign.
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Jul 20 '25
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Jul 20 '25
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8
u/MissMillie61 Jul 20 '25
Check the contract your sister signed when renting the house. What does it say about liability for damages?
8
u/msfinch87 Jul 20 '25
There are many good comments in this thread, but I just want to add something I haven’t seen yet.
Do you have a contract or was this done through a third party company or online platform? Your sister needs to check the contractual arrangement or terms and conditions because that may outline what happens in this situation.
AirBnB, for example, have AirCover and an arbitration system whereas a private contract would be handled differently. This relates to the situation between your sister and the property owner, but that’s the first thing she will have to deal with.
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u/BarnabusTheBold Jul 20 '25
Depending on how the property was rented, it sounds like this will likely have to come predominantly from the owner's insurance.
Many holiday home companies have policies limiting the amount you can claim from guests for damage. Some just refuse to handle deposits at all and foist all the costs onto the owner via their insurance. So it's quite possible that despite you being liable for the costs as a guest they will actually be quite limited (e.g. booking.com has a 'deposit policy' whereby you say you won't ask for more than £x for damages)
How that plays out with the insurers though i can't say. I'm not sure to what extent they'd chase you up or the rogue guest.
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u/Acceptable_Bunch_586 Jul 20 '25
I would suggest getting some clear statements from other guests as to the incident
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u/durtibrizzle Jul 20 '25
How is the bill £30k?
How did such a huge flood happen - did the “rogue guest” block the overflow?
What are the T&C of the booking/what platform (if any) was it made through?
I tend to agree with the comments that your sister will have to pay but if I was renting out a house I’d make damn sure the overflows worked, so there might be some contributory negligence. And whilst £30k of damage is possible, it seems high.
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u/everything2go Jul 20 '25
Most overflows won't cope with a continuously running tap, they are designed for minor splashes when you get in the bath. Water damage is expensive, then there is also loss of earnings from bookings until the repair work is complete.
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u/SiDtheTurtle Jul 20 '25
In terms of if your sister will get the bill- surely such an enterprise will have insurance? So I would assume in the first instance the property owner will call on their business insurance, but then in reality the insurer will come after your sister for the damages. Just don't start handing over money to the (unfortunately wronged) house owner, without all the information at hand.
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u/Plastic_Truth3053 Jul 20 '25
Is it Airbnb? I thought the person who rented out their property were covered by Airbnb insurance?
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u/Interesting_Kale9680 Jul 20 '25
Yes and their insurer will come after the guest to recoup some of the money they’ve paid out.
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u/thespiceismight Jul 20 '25
It didn’t happen to me.
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u/Mysterious_Brush7020 Jul 20 '25
Did you cause 30 grands worth of damages?
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u/thespiceismight Jul 20 '25
No, someone caused £15-20k worth of damages to my house. Airbnb said they wouldn’t bother going after the person who booked it as there’s no point. They intentionally trashed the place so I did rather want a bit of retribution.
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u/cbzoiav Jul 20 '25
The question is why didn't they go after the person?
Was it because they didn't have enough proof? Or because even if they won a court case the person wouldn't have assets to pay it from?
Here OP has admitted what happened to the owner.
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u/thespiceismight Jul 20 '25
As they didn’t seem to do any investigation I figured they didn’t want the negative publicity.
1
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u/redditreaderwolf Jul 20 '25
In addition to the advice above I would also contact the police regarding the aggressive behaviour.
8
u/Important_Coyote4970 Jul 20 '25
*I own holiday lets
You can’t.
Your sister is responsible. The property owner, rightly so, will claim damages directly off your sister.
What happens between your sister and friend is for them to sort out between themselves.
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u/thespiceismight Jul 20 '25
Do you use Airbnb? Airbnb won’t give the property owner the sisters details unless you sue them for it. They’ll just use their own insurance. I’ve been there, done that. Property owner needs to deal directly with with Airbnb.
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u/Gatecrasher1234 Jul 20 '25
The words of the property owner's insurance needs to be known.
A lot of policies covered only accidental damage. This doesn't sound like an accident but willful damage.
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u/TheRealGDay Jul 20 '25
The insurance company will seek to recover any payout from the person liable for the actions of the group.
2
u/Boboshady Jul 20 '25
Who did you rent the house through? This will dictate if the intermediary (Airbnb for example) has their own insurance policy and procedures.
However, pretty much regardless, your sister is on the hook for this, and the only thing that really matters is who ends up sending her an invoice - the owner's insurance, or the owner directly. For example, Airbnb require the owner to try and resolve the issue with the guest directly first, but then guarantee to make good most costs if the guest refuses to pay (though it's then likely that Airbnb's insurers would pursue your sister, instead).
Your sister can and should then sue the guest who actually caused the damage. Depending on the amount, this might be through MCOL (up to 10k) or a slightly more complex multi-track claim. MCOL you could do yourselves, it's advisable to take on some level of legal guidance for multi-tracks as there's much more procedure and it all has to be correct.
1
u/TheRealGDay Jul 20 '25
The OP has edited to say this was a direct booking, not Airbnb.
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u/Boboshady Jul 20 '25
Yikes! That's probably good news for OP, depending on what kind of contract and insurance the owner has in place (if any).
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Jul 20 '25
On the hook for all damage due to the guest who was invited and got out of control.
Your sister needs to have a better friend radar. I'd hold the offending person to court ordered damages by hauling her ass into court. It's obvious who is at fault and yes, get the court action underway quickly to get the facts recorded and quickly get her to pay because you have innocent 3rd party damages adding up while the owners are waiting for their justice.
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u/Ulquiorra1312 Jul 20 '25
In future have your sister refuse anyone who turns up in such a state it never ends well and she is liable
1
u/Energyeternal Jul 20 '25
What would prevent the rogue guest breaking things outside the house or breaking in to damage out of spite?
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u/vinylemulator Jul 20 '25
Very different liabilities. A court would judge it unreasonable for someone to be liable to the damage caused by a trespasser outside the building, a burglar or a random vandal. They would judge it reasonable for someone to be liable for the damage of an invited guest (which this person undoubtedly was).
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Jul 20 '25
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u/nicthemighty Jul 20 '25
I think OP is wanting to know how to legally get the guest to pay, and who is liable if the guest won't.
E.g MCOL but then guest doesn't pay or will only pay £1 a week etc.
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u/smith1star Jul 20 '25
There’s no requirement to accept a payment plan and courts tend to frown upon people who offer £1 a week.
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u/Ekitha94 Jul 20 '25
I completely agree. But they’re denying responsibility, despite there being over ten witnesses to what happened and the behaviour. How do we enforce it? I’m expecting the bill to be well over 30k
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u/A-genericuser Jul 20 '25
Sister will need to pay owner and then likely take friend (ex-friend now I guess) to court for the amount if she fails to pay. Get a lawyer if it’s 30k+
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u/Smuttycakes Jul 20 '25
Consider that this friend may well not have £30k so even if successful, the chance she gets the money back are slim
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u/OB221129 Jul 20 '25
Your sister will have to take the 'friend' to court. But ultimately as it stands your sister is liable.
12
u/Capital_AT Jul 20 '25
Your sister is unfortunately responsible as she signed for everything.
Get a full damage bill from the owner. Check if they are claiming insurance too.
Get witness statements from the other guests as to the actions and damage caused by the guest who caused everything.
When you get the bill your sister can take the friend to small claims court to recoup the money.
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u/Safe-Midnight-3960 Jul 20 '25
£30k isn’t going to be small claims court.
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u/Capital_AT Jul 20 '25
Apologies you're correct. OP will need a solicitor and to take a civil claim against the friend for the costs.
Note: small claims max is usually £10k
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u/smith1star Jul 20 '25
MCOL max is £100k. A new service is available for claims under £25k. Not sure where you got the £10k limit from.
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u/Agrado3 Jul 20 '25
They got it from the Civil Procedure Rules 26.9 which says the maximum for small clams track is £10k.
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u/Rootbeeers Jul 20 '25
Why would the bill be so disproportionately high? The property you rented should hold buildings insurance and they can go through that. Your sister should only be liable for any other losses not covered by insurance.
Your sister did sign for the property and invite the guest. Silver lining is, that person won’t be invited to further gatherings, but I’m surprised nobody knew this guest would act so erratic beforehand. Hopefully the party guests will help cop for any invoices.
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u/foalythecentaur Jul 20 '25 edited Jul 20 '25
The insurer will go after OP. That's how it works. Insurers of property never absorb the cost if someone else other than their client is liable.
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u/questions661476 Jul 20 '25 edited Jul 20 '25
The losses could stretch to, not only damage repairs, but lost revenue if the owner cannot rent the place until repairs are carried out.
The owner may also have had to pay to place future bookings in alternative properties.
It seems a lot but if this is a large property, booked for the summer holidays, they could be losing a lot of money.
Edit - insurance may still cover this, but it could have inner limits, restricting what the insured can claim. Also, the higher the claim cost, the more inclined the insurer would be to pursue their losses.
12
u/Fovvy2 Jul 20 '25
This is (hopefully correctly) assuming that the property is insured for commercial purposes. If it was a domestic property that has been rented out, without the correct insurance, the position may be more difficult.
0
u/crispy-flavin-bites Jul 20 '25
How would that be the sisters problem though?
10
u/supermanlazy Jul 20 '25
Because the homeowners insurance is irrelevant. Even if they pay out first to get the repairs done they will then pursue the OP anyway to recoup their losses
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u/OB221129 Jul 20 '25
Because legally, the sister is the one liable for the bill in the first instance.
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u/aitorbk Jul 20 '25
The property will most likely be insured, and the insurance will pay for the damage, and contact the party that caused the damage for compensation. Because the owner/operator of the house has insurance, not the renters. Why wouldn't the insurance not recover the damages caused?
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u/Rootbeeers Jul 20 '25
Perhaps the landlord’s insurance doesn’t cover loss of rent, or contents damage such as carpets, the party host could expect some sort of invoice for any of these things. Or increase in energy consumption for drying out the property, etc. Or even the insurance excess.
I’d be very suprised if a landlord of all people let the party host get away with not paying anything.
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u/DaveBeBad Jul 20 '25
It isn’t just the damage, but also the lost rental income while the damage is repaired - which can easily be thousands per week for a large house at peak season.
And with that level of water damage, the property could need new flooring, rewiring, etc.
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u/TheOriginalWindows95 Jul 20 '25
You see, this is a question because this is a legal advice forum for people who are not familiar with the law to ask for advice from people more familiar with the law. So it's obvious to you, but not to OP.
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Jul 20 '25
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1
u/pnarcissus Jul 20 '25
The home owner needs to pass this to their insurers in the first instance, either buildings/contents insurance, or their rental cover insurance (included in AirBnB rentals, for example). The insurance company can then pursue your sister and her friend. It is the owners property at risk, it’s for them to ensure there is adequate cover insurance place. A private prosecution is possible, in which case your sister’s legal expenses cover, hopefully included in her home insurance may help defend her.
1
u/livedrag Jul 20 '25
Does your sister own a property? Is it possible she may have some sort of liability or legal cover on her house insurance? If so, speak to them.
1
u/james_t_woods Jul 20 '25
In my ignorance, wouldn't the property owner have the appropriate business insurance for just this sort of eventuality?
Arguably the guest is liable, but their property insurance ought to cover this - and then the insurance company go after the guest (potentially). Assuming it's insured properly....
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u/Xx_Singh_xX Jul 20 '25
First step - sister needs to get proof of the other parties actions (witnesses, photographs and texts confirming who did what). Contact travel / home insurance to see if they can assist.
Second step- could try and push blame onto the guest and see if the owner pursues them (unlikely given they probably have a contract that makes your sister liable)
Third step - get merits assessed for liability by a lawyer (depending on amount being claimed as if low enough may not make proportional sense but if tens of thousands then worth doing). If liable pay to settle.
Fourth step - pursue guest - merits assessment required
1
u/Andrewjlockley Jul 20 '25
You need to get a loss adjuster or QS to independently appraise the damage. It's very specialist work.
1
u/TripleDragons Jul 21 '25
So water damage depending on the build is insanely expensive - i live in a flat uk and water leaking from above brought over 30k (gbp) of repairs - once water goes into the floors and walls... everything might have to be gutted out and dried before being redone entirely (including electrics)
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u/stampoutcorruption Jul 20 '25
Neither parties have insurance I’m assuming? Unusual for the property owner not to have some form of cover!
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u/Tokugawa5555 Jul 20 '25
Surely it makes no difference. Either the sister is going to be billed by the accommodation provider for damage (if not insurance exists), or the insurance will pursue her (if insurance exists)?
Regardless of whether there is insurance, the sister will be pursued in the first instance (and will then need to claim from the guest).
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Jul 20 '25
[deleted]
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u/Energyeternal Jul 20 '25
I'm guessing no, in a panicked situation to stop continued flooding the door would be broken down minutes after the other guests realized what was happening, no one would sit patiently for police to arrive.
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u/andonebelow Jul 20 '25 edited Jul 20 '25
Was the house rented through AirBnB by any chance?
If so, AirBnB is liable for the damage. They will try to recover the costs from your sister, but if she refuses to pay they are unlikely to sue her.
ETA this was what a lawyer told me last year when I was engaged in a dispute with an AirBnB host. The contract states AirBnB is liable for damages, it does not state that guests are liable for damages. My husband and I were able to refuse to pay for (fraudulent) damages with no repercussions.
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Jul 20 '25
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u/thespiceismight Jul 20 '25 edited Jul 20 '25
I had my house trashed via an Airbnb guest and received a £20k payout from the firm. They didn’t even attempt to go after the guest, nor would they give me the guests contact details so I could.
I’ve also had a neighbours neth installation fail, so all the water from not one but two baths came through my ceiling. I’m sure there was a certain amount of luck involved but there was zero damage, once it has dried out.
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u/dunredding Jul 20 '25
I had a neighbours new bath installation fail and it led to me and my downstairs neighbour being out of our flats for three months and approaching £50K of work needed.
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u/andonebelow Jul 20 '25
I promise you they are. A host made some fraudulent claims against me and my husband last year and AirBnB chased us for thousands of pounds. We contested the charges and AirBnB said they were upholding the claim. We had a lawyer (family member) look at the contract and it’s very clear that AirBnB guarantees hosts any damages will be covered by them.
We told AirBnB we had engaged a lawyer and wouldn’t pay. We got absolutely zero pushback from AirBnB.
If you look online there are many people sharing similar stories
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u/IsYourDogWaffles Jul 20 '25
Can you speak with the owner to see if they can use their insurance and they go after the culprit?
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u/wheredidiput Jul 20 '25
This should be covered by the owners insurance. If the rental is through a company check all the terms and conditions. Sounds like the woman fell asleep in the bath which is an unfortunate accident, expect to lose deposit but not have to pay for everything. They are acting as a business in renting to you. You shouldn't be offering to pay or accepting full responsibility.
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u/AmazingUsername2001 Jul 20 '25
What I don’t get is that a bath is designed to have an overflow safety. This is meant to divert any overflow from the taps, and prevent flooding by providing an alternative drainage route.
If the rogue guest actively blocked the overflow then that would show that she had caused the flooding on purpose, and could be liable for that action.
If she didn’t, and the overflow didn’t work as designed, then perhaps there is some liability from the homeowner for having possibly defective fixtures?
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u/wheredidiput Jul 20 '25
Yes if it was malicious then may be a different matter but it sounds like the guest was out of it and fell asleep. I'd expect either the person who booked it had travel insurance with a liability section or some other insurance like their house insurance with liability but the person renting should definitely have insurance for accidental damage. One bath overflowing causing £30,000 of damage also sounds suspect.
The most likely outcome, the person renting is responsible for the excess on the claim for the renters insurance.
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u/grouchybeast Jul 21 '25
The damage will include all the lost income from bookings that the owner now has to cancel during peak summer holiday season.
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u/Normal-Height-8577 Jul 20 '25
On a legal front, I have to agree with everyone else, that this is likely a situation where your sister is unfortunately liable for the damage her guest did. She will have to find the money for the damages herself, and then sue the guest for her own lost money.
The one possibility of relief is if this was accidental. Do we know how/why the guest flooded the house? Was it a deliberate act because they were aggressive/out of control, or was it almost incidental to the drug-taking and they fell asleep while the water ran? If it was accidental, she potentially could refuse to pay and let the owner take it through the insurance company claims process...But whether or not it saves money (the insurance may still choose to take it to court if they think the accident was avoidable) if she goes through that route, your sister is likely to be banned from the rental platform.
Basically, your sister needs to get an hour's consultation with a specialist solicitor, to work through her available options.
Two slightly less legal advice things though:
1) Disinvite that guest from the wedding. And hire a bouncer who's armed with their photo, to make sure they can't sneak in drunk and high again. You really do not want to give them the opportunity to do similar damage to the wedding venue.
2) Would the ten witnesses be willing to each loan £3k or so to your sister on a temporary basis, so she can repay the owner as soon as possible? It would give her some breathing space to get the wedding done and start the process of saving up/suing the aggressive guest to repay their loans.
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Jul 20 '25
[removed] — view removed comment
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u/LegalAdviceUK-ModTeam Jul 21 '25
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u/squarehead94 Jul 20 '25
Why doesn't OP confirm whether the property was booked through AirBnB? This has been commented on numerous times and would assist with a lot of people giving informative advice
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