Expert: Dick Dennis - 8/21/2006

Question
I purchased my home in Tennessee in September 2005, but didn't move in until mid-November. Less than two weeks into December 2005, our septic tank backed up and we had to have it pumped. One month later in January 2006, it did it again and was pumped. At that time, we were advised that the drainfield the septic tank drains into was saturated and needed to be repaired. We were given an estimate of $1,800 to $2,000 and were advised to contact our realtor, which I did, because this is not something that happens overnight. My realtor advised me that because we did not require a septic tank inspection, we had no recourse. However, the reason we did not require either a septic tank or property inspection was because our realtor showed us inspections that had been done within 30 days prior to my placing an offer on the house. There had been a contract on the house that fell through two days before we made an offer on the house in 2005. The would-be purchaser had all the inspections completed and because the seller's realtor was a co-worker of our realtor, she had access to those inspections and showed them to us, along with the would-be purchaser's offer, the seller's counter-offer, and the final offer.

We finally saved up the money to repair the drainfield after several months and another two more pumpings of the septic tank because it kept backing up after heavy rains. We began the work in July  2006, and when the plumber began digging up the drainfield, he discovered the main cause of the problem was an underground spring that ran through our yard and filled up the lines, resulting in the tank being filled within a month and overflowing into our basement. His solution was to dig a trench around our propery to divert the flow of water. When he began digging the trench, he discovered one already existed, but hadn't been dug deep enough to solve the problem. And the pipe that had been used in the existing trench was actually the same pipe the seller's had left coiled up alongside the driveway.

This ended up costing me over $3,500 and our yard has been completely destroyed. On the seller's disclosure statement, they indicated no problems whatsoever with the septic tank. Do I have any recourse? Thank you in advance for your assistance.  

Answer
You are permitted to sue in small claims court for up to $7,500 (in most states, $5,000 otherwise), especially when the seller "indicated there were no problems whatsoever with the septic tank." As long as you have the document that says that, you have a good chance to win that case.

You first must make the demand to the seller along with a copy of the receipts of your costs. THEN you file the suit in small claims court if they do not pay.

I do wish you well.


Dick Dennis      dixiedee13@aol.com