Fire in the neighborhood, who’s responsible?

[tazhunter0]

Had to make a trip to Walmart today. Neighbor called and said we had a fire. About 5 minutes from the house we could see smoke. We got lucky sort of, fire burned fence, and yard mainly. It did get the lean to on the backside of my shop and inside my shop. Fireman from several surrounding areas responded to my house and several others in the area. We all got lucky and didn’t loose any houses but did loose some smaller out buildings. Oncor already told the fire department that the wires at a transformer had broke causing sparking and it to blow. ( how it was explained to me )
Do I need to get with my homeowners insurance or get with Oncor to get my shop and my fencing replaced?

Going to be a long night because on fire watch now. Fence post keep flaming up still.

[BlessedVeteran0305]

Shoot I'd try Oncor first to try and avoid making an insurance claim.

[Huntindad]

well, I'd be hosing down the fencepost sumtin fierce to keep it from firing up.

as was stated, get with Oncor. tell them what happened, they should send yo uto the right department. From there it could several directions...be prepared.

[Redfeathers]

Paid or volunteer fire department? I'm assuming volunteer since you stated fireman from several surrounding areas. You stated "how it was explained to me". Who explained what happened on scene to you, firemen, neighbor, Oncor? Was an employee with Oncor on scene and a witness to what happened or was an Oncor employee working in the immediate area? I would let your insurance company know about the situation either way, they may come out and they may not. If Insurance company will be involved, they may want one of their investigators or an adjuster to come look at the scene, take pics and interview any witnesses. If you do not call insurance and scene is cleaned up/removed, people running around moving/removing items they may have issues with that. Did anyone call a Fire Investigator/State Fire Marshal's Office for an investigation? Just a few things to think about. Sorry for your loss, glad to hear everyone is ok!

[AntlerCollector]

I’d get an official cause of fire report then contact Oncor if it was determined their equipment caused the fire. I’d also call my insurance company but wouldn’t file a claim unless Oncor wasn’t determined to be the fire source

[tazhunter0]

We have contacted our insurance, but waiting to hear back from them. Oncor is out here now running new lines. Hopefully we will know more in the morning.

Already had to call FD back out because a tree caught fire and was scared it would spread to others along the road and the pasture across the road from the house. Been hosing my fence post down but had FD soak them real good when they came back out. Hopefully I can sleep a bit tonight now.

[tazhunter0]

We got power again. Came on about 2:30am, my dogs are happy now that we are going back in the house. Hopefully I will get some shut eye and start figuring the damage later in the morning. Got to get a temporary yard fence up so I can let the dogs run some. It’s to dang hot to be building fence.

[bowhuntntxn]

Thats horrible Chris. I have zero advice on how to handle this, but I'm glad no one was injured, including the pets. I hope getting all this taken care of and repaired doesn't turn into a long drawn out process.

[Copanocruisin]

I would recommend that you contact your local fire marshal, could be a county fire marshal if out of city limits. (The authority having jurisdiction). And request that the Texas State Fire Marshal investigate the cause. You can even contact their office yourself. As a retired chief fire officer for over 22 years, with the laser 16 years as Fire Chief of a small rural Fire Department, I have been involved with quiet a few investigations and even court cases.

That State Fire Marshal Investigations or respected the same as a Texas Ranger’s investigation out come. Best of luck one the outcome. Keep us updated, the folks out in the boon docks are always curious, as it could have been one of us. Just saying…….cC

[flywise]

The fence post should be cut down and tossed in the the burned area where it will be wine even if it continues to burn. Your insurance will cover your damages if the damages are more than your deductible. Oncor may or may not be responsible for damages but I highly doubt they will be. Your insurance company may try and recoup some money from them

[Quackerbox]

The insurance is gonna call a fire investigator and the power company will do the same. They will write separate reports and both will try and screw you.

Oncor is going to say it's transformers fault, insurance is gonna say they can't properly investigate cause everything causing fire is gone

At least that's what happened when an F250 burned my brother's house down

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[BRUTE 23]

The insurance is gonna call a fire investigator and the power company will do the same. They will write separate reports and both will try and screw you.

Oncor is going to say it's transformers fault, insurance is gonna say they can't properly investigate cause everything causing fire is gone

At least that's what happened when an F250 burned my brother's house down

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I would get an attorney now to consult with and so they are up to speed. Let both parties know right now, up front, you mean business. It will change their attitude as I agree with the post above.

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[Atfulldraw]

You are going to smell smoke inside your house forever....

Your insurance company is not going to properly investigate nor properly compensate you.

Years from now, when you sell your house, you will have to disclose this event.

Your first call should be to a qualified public adjuster or an attorney with extensive experience in handling fire claims. They will likely hire an industrial hygenist to develop a proper protocol for cleaning and repairing your property.

I do know a guy.

[BTLowry]

Dang Chris, glad the damage was limited to outbuildings and fences

I have the stuff to set up a temporary electric fence if you need it

[Atfulldraw]

Shoot I'd try Oncor first to try and avoid making an insurance claim.

This is terrible advice.

I'm not a licensed attorney, but my understanding is that third party liability doesn't pay replacement cost but rather actual cash value (unlike most homeowners policies)

Ask a hundred people why they have insurance and a healthy number of them will say "fire".....so tell me again why you wouldn't file a claim.

Further, some insurance policies are now requiring you to notify them of a loss.

That would possibly be a material breach of the policy to not let them know when your house and property has been damaged.