You work hard to be able to buy things that you want and need, which is why it’s so frustrating when another person willfully and intentionally damages your personal property. Property damage can occur in many different circumstances, and some claims are considerably more difficult to prove in a court of law than others. Here’s a look at how to pursue a property damage claim in NYC and when it’s time to hire an experienced property damage lawyer.
What Constitutes Property Damage?
In New York, property damage often occurs as a form of vandalism, such as someone throwing a rock through your window or putting graffiti on your wall. Property damage also occurs as acts of nature, such as hailstorm damage to a roof.
If you are involved in an automobile accident, you may have a property damage claim if the at-fault driver damaged your car by crashing into you. These types of property damage claims often involve physical injuries in addition to the destruction of property. In auto accident cases, property that you can make a loss claim on include the cost of a vehicle repair, fair market value of the car for a total loss, rental car costs while the car is being repaired, and also property damaged inside the car like a laptop or prescription sunglasses.
Proving Liability for Property Damage
Property damage claims often involve an insurance company that wants to pay as little as possible to settle your claim or repair the damaged property. These types of lawsuits are also often heard in small claims courts before judges.
To pursue your case, you’ll need to prove that you suffered from property damages due to someone else’s misconduct or that the person did not act with reasonable care. In addition to showing these elements of negligence, you’ll also need to prove how much damage took place so that it can be repaired or replaced in the appropriate amount
With a property damage lawyer on your side, you may also be able to prove that a person had a duty to act responsibly and failed to do so, which resulted in your property damage. Examples of this are if a neighbor hits a ball over his fence and cracks your window or if a professional contractor does not act upon a dangerous wiring situation that causes damage in your home. More than one person can be negligent for property damage, which complicates your case. In this situation, a judge may apply the principle of comparative negligence to determine a percentage that you can recover for your property damage loss.
Property Damage Statute of Limitations
Property damage cases in New York have a statute of limitations that impose a deadline on your ability to file a lawsuit. Our state’s statute of limitations for property damage claims is generally, not always, three years regardless of whether your claim is for damage to your house, land, vehicle damage, or other personal property. If you miss this three-year date, or if it is a lesser date, the court is likely to dismiss the case upon the defendant’s request.
Consult a Property Damage Lawyer
At the Law Office of Jeffrey K. Kestenbaum, we understand how important your property is to you and we are here to fight for your rights. As a Brooklyn landlord negligence attorney, we will help you file a claim in a timely way to recover damage to your personal property, as well as any pain and suffering, lost wages, medical bills, and permanent disability due to injuries you sustained from an accident.
To learn more about what a property damage claim entails and how our legal team can help, please contact us at 718-237-5586 for a free legal consultation.
