Latent defects – Flooded basement

I bought a house 4 months ago; a week ago, after it rained, my basement flooded

(*)Extract from a real query, which, given how frequent and important it is, we reproduce as a common query/answer, omitting its origin and leaving out any details that might reveal the person’s identity. “I bought a house 4 months ago; a week ago, after it rained, my basement flooded with about 40 cm of water. The insurer’s loss adjuster spoke to the neighbours, who told him this has been happening for many years, that the previous owner once tried to fix it without success and that this is why they sold it (sold it to me). We had no idea and have only realised now because it rained. Our expert tells me to contact a lawyer because this is a latent defect. The insurance company’s loss adjuster tells me he cannot give me his report because he works for my insurer.” OUR ANSWER TO THE CLIENT: Having received the photographs and the deed of sale, we see that the purchase date is 17 June 2015, so any lawsuit for latent defects against the sellers must be filed before 17/12/2015 (6 months). This is an expiry period, which means that if the lawsuit is not filed in court before that date, you will no longer be able to claim anything. And the period cannot be interrupted because, as explained, it is not a limitation period but an expiry period. The steps to take are as follows: – Latent defects cannot be claimed if the person affected, like you, was under an obligation to be aware of them, that is, if you were an architect, a quantity surveyor or someone from the construction trade. You are clearly a doctor, so you can claim. – Secondly, an expert report must be drawn up by an architect, whose cost will include our architect’s attendance at the trial (we work throughout Spain). – It would be very useful to obtain the expert report from your insurer’s loss adjuster; we understand you are entitled to obtain it, given that you pay for your policy. We advise you to contact your insurer directly to inform them that you wish to sue the previous owners for latent defects and need that report, especially since, according to you, the adjuster says he has spoken to neighbours and that they already knew about this construction defect, as did the seller, and that this was the reason for selling the home. If those statements are recorded in the report, or in the adjuster’s field notes (with the neighbours’ statements), it is extremely important to obtain that document. – Once the expert report is complete, in order to prepare the lawsuit we would need you to grant a power of attorney for litigation before a notary. The fees of our legal department are calculated according to the fee scale of the Bar Association where the lawsuit is filed (in your case Pontevedra) and on the basis of the actual amount at stake in the proceedings. All of this must be done as a matter of the utmost urgency, given the short time limits you have for making the claim. It would be worth your reading some articles published by our firm on our website; we attach the links: https://dpcon.es/origen-agua-cimentacion/ https://dpcon.es/la-importancia-de-los-ensayos-complementarios-a-un-dictamen/ All of them concern water analysis; perhaps, before setting the whole protocol in motion, you could obtain information yourselves on the origin of the water. Regardless of the expert report, it would be advisable to start establishing with certainty where the water is coming from. The fact that we give you the expiry date (17/12/2015) as a reference does not mean we have plenty of time, far from it, because by that date the lawsuit must have been filed in court, which means that well before then we will need to have the expert reports and the power of attorney in hand, and to have properly studied and drafted the lawsuit. Taking the decision just one month before that fateful date would not give us enough time. So, and we insist on this in your own interest, any decision, whether you instruct us or other professionals of your choice, must be taken as quickly as possible. Yours sincerely, Dpcon, SL