Did your landlord shut off your water? Have you and your family been forced to live in your rental apartment without access to running water? If so, you might have grounds to take legal action against your landlord. You should seek legal assistance as soon as possible – our lawyers here at Downtown L.A. Law Group are ready to help you every step of the way.

We have decades of experience handling all sorts of claims, including those involving landlord-tenant issues, like those arising from tenants being forced to live in poor conditions. Our lawyers are ready to evaluate your claim and provide you with the guidance that you need to sue and recover the compensation that you are owed.

If you are ready to discuss your legal options with our attorneys, contact us today.

The Warranty of Habitability

According to California law, landlords have a duty to keep their rental properties habitable for their tenants. Most other states have similar laws. In a nutshell, landlords have to ensure that their rentals meet certain requirements (like have working electrical wiring, have sturdy walls/floors, have working plumbing, etc.) to be considered habitable. Based on the warranty of habitability, landlords must ensure that their rentals have access to running water. If a landlord shuts off the water, then the warranty of habitability is breached. It is important to note that even when not explicitly stated in a rental agreement, the warranty of habitability is always implied.

My Landlord Shut Off the Water

Typically, a portion of the rent payment is designated for the water bill (in most rental properties, the water utility is under the property owners name/account). As long as you are paying rent, then your water should be on and working properly. In some cases, certain repairs might require the landlord to shut off the water temporarily; of course, your landlord must give you notice of the shut off.

Of course, it is possible for landlords to shut off the water without a valid reason. They might outright refuse to cover the water bill even if you are paying it, which could result in the utility company shutting it off. The landlord might even just shut off the water to purposefully try and get the tenants to leave the property – this is common when the landlord is trying to evict the tenant. It is also possible for the landlord to not turn the water back on after what was supposed to be a temporary shut-off. Whatever the reason behind your landlord shutting off the water, a rental property without access to water is considered uninhabitable, and you could have grounds to take action.