(tennessee) Water Company Shut Off Water By Mistake Which Caused A Leak. Now They Are Expecting Me To Pay $1,137.

Context: I have been renting an apartment in a quadplex (four apartments in one long building) since September of 2024.

Mid-January, I came home from work and had no water. I called the water company to which they stated that it was shut off due to "non-payment," which was untrue because I had paid it. Water Company called back and stated that they turned my water off by mistake, and that Apartment 1’s water was supposed to be shut off. Due to my water being shut off in the freezing temps, my pipes had frozen due to my water being shut off. I got that fixed. About 2 weeks ago, I got a notice that my water had been shut off again due to a leak at the meter. I notified my landlord, and it took 3 days to get a plumber out to fix it. I knew my bills was going to be high due to the leak, but I received my bill today for $1,137.86.

I immediately contacted my landlord who said that all he could do was give me a repair report. He also stated that, per my lease, "tenants are responsible for broken pipes due to freezing," and "all charges for water including any leaks shall be borne by the tenants." So, it appears like I’m stuck with the water bill.

However, this all originated from the water company mistakenly turning off my water. Unfortunately, the water company does open until Monday morning so I can’t dispute it with them until then. Is this something I could pursue legally? What type of lawyers would be the ones to assist with this?