Sewers
City pressure-cleaned sewer line and it it overflowed into my bathroom...what now?
The city I live in is in control of all my utilities. They "jet" cleaned the lines and it caused a projectile overflow through my toilet. I didn't know what it was at first. I heard all the plumbing lines in my house going haywire They were rattling and gurgling. After about 10 minutes of scurrying around the house trying to find the source and calling my neighbor over, I noticed a very distinct odor.....Sewage. I ran to the bathroom and I saw a fountain of nasty murky water exploding from my toilet. I closed the lid and the pressure was forceful enough to bring the lid back up. It soon settled down and began to gurgle. There was very little water in there but it bubbled. Then it exploded again. My neighbor saw the city workers outside and flagged them down. They ran into my house and told me that it was because they were flushing the lines. They looked at my bathroom and said that there was extensive damage. They said they could have a clean-up crew come to take care of it but could not guarantee when it would be done....could take a few days. They told me to not touch that bathroom and use my other until the crew had cleaned it up. I told them that I only had ONE bathroom. In addition, I have 3 children, one happened to be a newborn. The mess was unsanitary and it smelled the whole house with raw sewage. They told me to go ahead and clean it and they would send an insurance adjuster to my home to compensate me for the damages and what it would have cost to get a clean up company there. The adjuster came to my home after I had to call her. When she got here, she acted like I was a burrden on her. She told me that I will get "replacement value" and not to expect full price for anything. She was going to review the notes and send her conclusion in the mail. The insurance adjuster sent me a letter a month later stating that they will give me a check for 50 dollars if I agree to sign a liability release form. There was about 600 dollars worth of damage. My house smelled like sin for a few days, it was nothing but an inconvenience and there was nothing I could have done to have prevented this from happening. It will happen again, they told me they will mail me a letter before they clean the lines next time so that I know when they are going to do it. That way I can put a few bricks on my toilet lid. Btw, I never did sign that liability and I called the adjuster to tell her that the 50 dollar offer was only adding insult to injury. AND this has happened to a few of my neighbors as well!! Has anyone ever had anything like this happen before? Are there any agencies I can report this to? To me, this is an environmental hazard and I actually feel vulnerable when it comes to dealing with the city (utility company) as they have shown me that my family and I are of no value to them :( ETA my house is about 45 years old...as are the others on my block and I live in MD if it I did take my own pictures. The adjuster took only a few pictures. How could I get their attention if they are at this point ignoring me since I refuse to sign their letter? They claim that replacement value is what the items could be bought for "used". I'm not buyng a used oral b triumph lol
Public Comments
- Contact city utilities, and also the city council. Make copies of all your receipts, and pictures that you may have taken. Obtain affidavits from your neighbors. If needed also contact the Mayor's office. There is a 50% chance they will work with you on this situation and compensate you for the damages and inconvenience. But, also a 50% chance they won't and will need to retain legal counsel.
- Do you have pictures?Please tell me you took photos,other wise your pretty much stuck with the adjusters version! but no,their offer is bogus,we had the same happen here in fla when the city messed up a line and flooded everyones house with sewage,it cost them 100s of 1000s.they know they are liable,dont take the offer and dont let them intimidate you.keep pursuing it,and if all else fails go to the media,or maybe get a lawyer with your neighbors.Accept nothing less than full restoration.You are totally in the right!
