Q: I am wondering if I would be considered negligent in the below scenario?
While I was doing some renovations for a customer, a drill bit pierced the main water line and caused a pool of water in the customer’s house. Typically, a waterline runs from the meter towards the driveway and out onto the street. With this in mind, I was in the basement facing the garage wall where the water meter is and I was building walls around this area. Unbeknownst to me (or the homeowner), the waterline apparently runs diagonally across the basement in the opposite direction. When the city workers came, even they had trouble locating the shut off from the city line as it was a down the street and not in the driveway as expected.
A:
It's possible. As a general policy, construction work requires identification and avoidance of utilities in the vicinity, including electric, gas, or water. At this point, explore whether insurance will cover damages. Good luck
Tim Akpinar
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