Chicago couple on the hook after fire from neighbor's garbage burns down their house
CHICAGO (CBS) – A Chicago family learned their home insurance policy had lapsed when they needed it the most: after a devastating fire.
The flames spread from their neighbor's property. CBS 2's Lauren Victory looked into the question of why the person next door wasn't paying for damages.
The Chicago family never expected recordings of a Christmas memory would mean so much.
"The video was taken right there," said Yolanda Redmond, pointing to the now-boarded up window where the recording was taken.
The coach house belonging to Redmond and her high school sweetheart, Willie White Jr., may never be available for the holidays again. It's boarded up and uninhabitable.
"I heard some hollering, and I'm thinking someone's out maybe having fun," Redmond said.
That night in August, screams were heard from a frantic neighbor. Their home, which's been in the family for more than 70 years, was burned beyond repair.
Redmond said she thinks it would cost at least $200,000 to replace everything, but it's money the couple is on the hook for, even though a neighbor's trash was the source of the fire, according to a Chicago Fire Department report. "Ignition of rubbish in a city-issued plastic garbage can" was the source, investigators concluded.
"It's not our garbage cans. These are yours," White said, referring to his neighbor.
The coach house owners were desperate to make the point it wasn't their fault, because their neighbor's insurance provider won't cover their loss.
"They're not taking responsibility," White said. "Which is kinda crazy to me."
Unfortunately, it's not that crazy, because there's something important to mention. The Whites said they didn't realize until the fire that the insurance policy for the six-unit building on their property was active, but coverage for the coach house had lapsed.
"It's critical to pay attention, make sure you have insurance," said Janet Ruiz, a spokesperson for the Insurance Information Institute.
The institute partners with insurers to educate the public. Ruiz explained why property owners should have their own coverage even in situations when they are not at fault.
"If the coach house has its own insurance, they would pay the claim, and then they would figure all that out, and they would collect if they could," Ruiz said.
But as the situation stands, Willie and Yolanda are on their own.
Victory: "Is your intention to rebuild?"
Yolanda: "Yes."
They'll need to sue the person next door and win if they want reimbursement.
An email to the couple from their neighbor's Allstate representative said, "I do not see any evidence that my insured caused or contributed to the loss. The location is an open alley."
CBS 2 sent pictures to Allstate's media team because it seemed pretty obvious that the fire started in a driveway, not an alley, but that didn't change the company's mind.
That means the grandparents will have to make Christmas memories somewhere else, at least this year.
CBS 2 reached out to the neighbor whose garbage cans ignited but did not hear back.