CHARLESTON — A South Charleston woman is suing State Automobile Mutual Insurance Company for breach of contract and negligence after a bathroom remodel caused a flood.
Core Contracting Solutions was also named as a defendant in the suit.
Jill C. Dunn hired Core Contracting Solutions to remodel the upstairs bathroom of her South Charleston residence and the remodel was completed on May 26, 2021, according to a complaint filed in Kanawha Circuit Court.
Dunn claims two days later she left for vacation and when she came back home on May 31, 2021, she found that the connection which had been installed by the defendant between the bathroom vanity and the main water line failed and was flooding the second floor, the main floor and the basement.
"The water was still leaking into the upstairs bathroom and the house smelled of mildew," the complaint states. "Plaintiff notified the Defendant's owner, Mark Ferrell, by telephone on May 31, 2012, about the condition of the residence."
Ferrell then came to the residence and said that the connector had caused the leak and that he would take care of the problems with the water leak, according to the suit.
Dunn claims she also contacted State Automobile Mutual Insurance Company and the insurance carrier for Core and filed a claim.
State Automobile failed to pay all claimed damages and stopped communicating with the plaintiff. It also failed to reimburse the plaintiff or pay ServPro, which it had approved to remove the water and mold and remediate the house.
The plaintiff filed a complaint with the West Virginia Insurance Commission on March 30, according to the suit.
Dunn claims the defendants were negligent and breached their contracts with her.
Dunn is seeking compensatory and punitive damages with pre- and post-judgment interest. She is representing herself.
The case is assigned to Circuit Judge Kenneth Ballard.
Kanawha Circuit Court case number: 23-C-451
