Liability for Damage: What to Do?

Questioner

During my neighbor's renovation work, cracks appeared in my plasterwork. My neighbor has liability insurance. However, his liability insurance states that I must call in my building insurance, which in turn must recover the costs from my neighbor's liability insurance. However, my building insurance states that this is completely outside the scope of this, as the damage was caused by demolition work, which is not covered by the policy. What is the normal course of events in this situation? Who should do what?

Lawyer

Normally you should hold your neighbor liable for your damage. The neighbor then passes this on to his insurance. Now that your building insurance does not provide coverage, you should hold your neighbor liable in the usual way. If you cannot reach an agreement, you can contact me directly via a private message.