Shower glass screen broken- tenant or my responsibility?

Hi

Have a strange request- my PM has advised that the tenant reported shower screen just exploded/shattered out of nowhere (see attached photo).

PM is saying that this is my responsibility to repair it. How do I know that the tenant didn't accidentally break it? There's been no issues with the shower glass before. I've also repaired all issues before.

Scratching my head here...suck it up and pay for it or put it back on the tenant? Advice appreciated!

 

That's scary.
I would ask the PM to investigate further.
If that was me, I would suck it up and pay for it right now for this to be dealt with asap as this is a matter involving safety issues. I would then on charge it to tenant if PM found out that it is their fault. The challenge is figuring out if it is their fault or not.

 

Scary thing is, I have seen this happen (not a shower screen, but an old-school stereo unit in the family home). We were all just sitting watching tv, and the thing just shattered and crumbled in front of our eyes (nobody was near it at the time!).

Sidenote - I just love the floor tiles. I had them at my last place. Very late 80's - early 90's vogue.

 

Have also seen this happen too out of nowhere, must have been caused by a manufacturing fault or possibly the installation introduced a stress point.

If I were a tenant and this happened to me I'd be quite shocked, last thing I'd want is the landlord asking me for proof that I didn't break it myself (how would I prove that?)

Another vote to pay for a replacement asap.

 

Have heard of shower screens, windows, glass table tops and oven door shattering for no apparent reason. Something to do with how the glass involved was manufactured.

So many windows shattered on a new high rise office building in Brisbane that awnings were erected over the footpath to protect pedestrians.
Marg

 

Check insurance - my insurance covers glass breakage as standard option.

Also check cost if worthwhile to claim on insurance

 

+1 for checking the insurance. I reckon if the tenant looks after the rest of the house properly, then they wouldn't have done anything with malicious intent.
Chalk it up as an incident that was going to happen sooner or later.

Ps. I once accidently broke a shower screen, but that was because the runner or hinge was loose on the shower frame, causing the glass panel to move much too quickly. I used my normal force but it was too much.

 

My dads huge glass dining table shattered like that. It was a super hot day and they turned the aircon on - vent directly above the table. After an hour or so there was an almighty bang and the table had shattered. Scary.

 

Dancing on the tabletop will do that.

 

To be fair, he has put on a bit of weight these last few years.

 

Thanks for all the replies, I googled it and apparently it does happen. I've just never experienced it so it was quite strange. It's probably not worth claiming insurance for so will suck it up...(and deduct expense next year!)

 

The balcony door where we are renting just suddenly shattered. Hubby was home when this happened, he just heard a cracking sound. It did not shatter into pieces, unlike the photo. The landlord was suspicious, and the "good thing" about the glass not being in pieces was, there was proof there was no impact point. The landlord had called in a tradie that evening and had it fixed up. The tradie took some more photos, which is fine by us. If I had thrown a rock to it, there would be an entry point, if that makes sense?

Other neighbor, a few years ago had their shower screen shatter too, just like that.

 

Glazed pool fences do the same esp. the cheap imported stuff.

 

There are many dodgy china import screens that don't meet Australian standards and do just this.
How else can you supply a
$200 semi frameless shower screen delivered for that price

 

There is a lot of faulty imported shower glass. A shower screen in one of my properties supposedly just exploded. It looks like that is what happened to yours. It is probably not the tenants fault and your responsibility to have a safe house.Just suck it up and pay for it. I am not sure what it cost but it wasn't a lot I didn't bother claiming insurance. It is just a cost of doing buisiness.

 

Well attested phenomenon: Spontaneous glass breakage - Wikipedia

 

This is more common then people are aware. Glass in showers and sliding doors are the most common