THE SHORT ANSWER
Water on the floor often raises several questions at once: who investigates, who repairs and which insurer needs a report? Start with the housing association and your insurer. You do not have to decide every responsibility yourself before reporting what happened.
Separate responsibility for maintaining the apartment, a possible claim for damages and what insurance can pay. A loss starting in your apartment does not by itself settle all three questions. The cause, law, association bylaws and insurance terms need to be kept apart. [1][2]
Keep these points in mind
- Report the damage to both the association and your insurer.
- Not every leak is water-conduit damage under the law.
- Ask for separate explanations of responsibility and payment.
STEP BY STEP
How to check your cover
Limit the damage and record what you know
Try to stop the water if it is safe to do so. Move belongings away from moisture and contact the association and insurer. If describes shutting off water, drying up water and reporting the loss as initial actions. Follow the instructions for your situation.
Record when you discovered the damage and take photographs. Describe what you can actually see. If the cause is unknown, say so. Keep contact details and case numbers so that you can refer to the same event in your next conversation.
[4]Ask the association what needs investigating
Ask who will investigate the leak and which parts are affected: belongings, surface finishes, fixed fittings or the building structure. Request the findings in writing. A list of damaged parts helps you ask the right questions without mixing them together.
Find the association's bylaws too. The Swedish Tenant-Ownership Act starts from you maintaining the apartment at your own expense, but contains exceptions and refers to the bylaws. Do not read a general division of responsibilities as a decision about your particular loss.
[2][1]Check the tenant-owner supplement separately
Look for your own supplement or a collective supplement through the association. Ask for the policy schedule, terms and instructions for reporting damage. The association's building insurance and a collective tenant-owner supplement are different things.
Note the excess, age-related reductions and terms cited by the insurer. If describes age-related reductions and the cost of your own improvements when reinstating the property, for example. Use your own agreement; a total renovation estimate is not a final insurance payment decision.
[3][4]Keep someone else's claim separate
If the association or a neighbour demands money from you, keep the demand and report it to your home insurer. Liability cover may be relevant. Trygg-Hansa describes checking whether cover applies and investigating liability before considering payment.
Ask for that assessment before accepting liability or promising to pay. A demand is not an established debt. Keep it separate from the question of who repairs your own apartment.
[6]
Common kinds of water damage and who does what
According to Konsumenternas, water damage most often occurs in kitchens or bathrooms. Common causes are a leaking dishwasher or floor drain, or defective surface and waterproofing layers. A leak from a pressurised cold- or hot-water supply pipe, also called a tap-water pipe, is water-conduit damage. It has its own rule on responsibility in the Swedish Tenant-Ownership Act, described further down.
Contact the association first and report the damage to both the association and your insurer. Who ultimately pays depends on the cause, the parts affected, the association bylaws and the insurance terms. Konsumenternas describes the usual division as follows:
- The association investigates what caused the damage and assesses its extent. It is also responsible for exposing the surface layers and drying out the building structure.
- The association's building insurance often covers the extra electricity cost when the structure is dried out with heater fans.
- In most cases you are responsible for damage to the apartment's surface finishes. That damage can be reported under your tenant-owner supplement.
- A claim for damages from the association or neighbours can be reported to the liability cover in your home insurance.
Water-conduit damage has a specific rule
The Swedish Tenant-Ownership Act has a specific allocation of responsibility for water-conduit damage. Here this means leakage from a pressurised cold- or hot-water supply pipe. If distinguishes this from leaks from drains, heating pipes or wet rooms. A leaking bathroom waterproofing layer is therefore not automatically the same thing.
The association normally has responsibility for repairs after water-conduit damage, but the law has exceptions involving negligence or neglect by you or certain other people it specifies. Ask whoever assesses the damage to explain the rule and cause on which the assessment rests.
[2][3]Ask about each cost separately
Make a simple list: investigation, drying, reinstatement, damaged belongings and possibly other accommodation. Ask who handles each item and which documents are missing. Konsumenternas describes home insurance potentially covering extra costs of temporary accommodation after major damage, following consultation with the insurer.
Read which kinds of leaks the policy covers too. If specifies requirements for wet-room construction, for example. Water escaping is therefore not enough to explain a particular insurance payment.
[7][5]Find the documents when you need them
In My Forsio, you can bring together policy schedules and terms and open the documents available for a policy. Check home insurance and the tenant-owner supplement separately. If a collective supplement is missing, ask the association for its documents before reaching a conclusion.
Claim check Beta can help you read relevant terms within its supported areas. It does not replace reporting a claim, the association's investigation or the insurer's decision. Forsio does not decide responsibility for repairs or liability for damages.
Fictional example
One leak, three questions
Sam finds water beside a kitchen cupboard. The association has not yet established its cause.
- Damaged belongings
- Check home insurance
- Fixed fittings
- Check the supplement and responsibility
- Cause of damage
- UnverifiedAn investigation is needed before a conclusion.
Responsibility and payment have not been decided. The example shows how to organise the questions, not how a real claim should be settled.
Common questions
Who pays for water damage in a tenant-owned apartment?
It depends on the cause and the parts affected. According to Konsumenternas, the association investigates the cause, exposes the surface layers and dries out the structure, while you are usually responsible for the apartment's surface finishes. That damage can be reported under your tenant-owner supplement. Water-conduit damage has a specific rule in the Tenant-Ownership Act. [1][2]
Who do I contact first after water damage?
Start with the housing association. Konsumenternas says to contact the association first and report the damage to both the association and your insurer. Try to stop the water if it is safe to do so and record what you can see. [1][4]
What are the most common kinds of water damage?
According to Konsumenternas, water damage most often occurs in kitchens or bathrooms, for example when a dishwasher or floor drain leaks or surface and waterproofing layers are defective. A leak from a pressurised water supply pipe is water-conduit damage, with its own rule on responsibility. [1]
Does the same rule apply to all water damage?
No. The cause matters. The specific rule for water-conduit damage does not cover every leak in a bathroom or kitchen. Ask for the established cause and the basis for allocating responsibility. [3]
Does my maintenance responsibility mean I was negligent?
No. Maintenance responsibility and a claim for damages are different questions. If someone demands compensation from you, both liability and the scope of insurance need assessing. [2][6]
Can I ignore the excess when comparing the payment?
Ask for a calculation showing the excess, any age-related reductions and the costs covered. Compare it with the terms and ask about each unexplained item. [4]
MY FORSIO
Keep home insurance and the supplement close.
Bring your documents together in My Forsio and see what they say. Free for individuals, with no insurance sales.
Sources and references
Sources checked
This guide explains general principles of Swedish insurance. Your policy schedule and terms set out what applies to you.
- Konsumenternas: water damage in a tenant-owned apartment
- Swedish Parliament: Tenant-Ownership Act (1991:614), Chapter 7, Section 12
- If: water damage in a building and allocation of responsibility
- If: reporting water damage and reinstatement costs
- If: water damage covered by home insurance
- Trygg-Hansa: liability insurance and claims for damages
- Konsumenternas: home insurance cover and extra living costs