Tag: Community Association Insurance

Summer is here and like many associations, yours might want to celebrate with and create goodwill among members. But before sponsoring an athletic event like a basketball game at your community, read your liability policy to see if athletic events are covered and speak to your insurance broker also. Why? Insurers often exclude injuries resulting from athletic events from an association’s liability coverage, which could leave the community open to liability for any injuries that occur during the game.

If you’re threatened with a lawsuit by a member who claims that her consumer protection rights under the federal Fair Debt Collections Practices Act (FDCPA) have been violated by you or your staff, your association's master policy carrier may consider settling the case rather than face the enormous burdens of time and costs required to defend a lawsuit—even if it’s frivolous.

Before sponsoring an athletic event like a basketball game at your community, read your liability policy to see if athletic events are covered and speak to your insurance broker also. Why? Insurers often exclude injuries resulting from athletic events from an association’s liability coverage, which could leave the community open to liability for any injuries that occur during the game. If athletic events aren’t covered, ask your broker if you can buy an “endorsement,” which adds the excluded risk to your coverage.

Q: The association I manage has a general liability insurance policy. Is this enough to protect the association board members from lawsuits, or should I consider additional insurance?

Facts: A Florida condominium community was damaged by a hurricane. However, its insurer's estimate of damages didn't exceed the deductible for the property, so the insurer made no payment to the association.

Be sure to review the terms of your association's insurance policies after purchasing them. Somewhere in the purchasing process, an agent may have entered a wrong number, and your association may be getting less coverage than it expected.

This happened in a recent case in which a member suffered substantial water and mold damage to her condominium as a result of Hurricane Katrina. After the hurricane, the member notified the association and made claims under the applicable policies for damages sustained to her unit. These claims were either denied or only partially paid.

Facts: A water leak developed directly above a member's condominium. The member permitted a restoration company into his condo to dry the carpet and an environmental inspection group to inspect the premises. The inspection results showed that the member's condo contained visible microbial growth on the closet and bathroom walls. The association then asked the member to move from his condo so the remediation could be performed. The member denied that his condo had any mold and refused to vacate unless the association paid his relocation expenses.