Jeffrey Johnson is a legal writer with a focus on personal injury. He has worked on personal injury and sovereign immunity litigation in addition to experience in family, estate, and criminal law. He earned a J.D. from the University of Baltimore and has worked in legal offices and non-profits in Maryland, Texas, and North Carolina. He has also earned an MFA in screenwriting from Chapman Univer...

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UPDATED: Jan 13, 2016

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Insurance Question from Mesa, AZ

Asked on 01/13/2016

Am I liable for injury that allegedly took place at my rental property due to a fight between two guests of my tenant? I received a call from the Mom of the injured person saying that he needed $4,000 of dental work from being punched by another person. She says I am responsible since I own the property. I told her she should sue to person that hit her son and her response was that he doesn't have any money, so they are going to sue me because [they think] I have money or my homeowners insurance will pay them. Thank you.

Answer given on January 17, 2016

If you own rental property and you have the proper insurance for that location, your insurance company will defend you if you are sued for an incident at your property.Based on the information provided about a fight involving two guests at your property, you have no legal liability for the event that occurred. There has to be negligence on your part for you to be legally liability for any such injuries. It is possible that your tenant could have some liability, but that is not your concern.Advise your insurance company as to what is occurring. They will contact the other party and most likely decline any liability for the injuries. If the other party decides to sue, then your insurance company will defend you in court and if there is any judgement against you, they will pay that judgement up to your liability limits. If the other party loses in court, you would have no financial responsibility to them.

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