[wgustafson]

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Our townhome’s HOA board, of which I’m a member, recently became aware that at least one unit owner carries Condo insurance rather than HO-3. Our bylaws require owners to carry casualty insurance; the HOA does not for private units. Our management company (MC) states they only verify submission of an insurance policy, not the type of policy. Our MC agreement specifies administrative duties include “a) maintain association files and records, including homeowner insurance and lease tracking”. They are adamant they will not check for HO-3 coverage, citing they are not an insurance company as reason. What is common practice among MC’s? And maybe a legal question, does term “homeowner insurance” include condo insurance??

[profdan_h]

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Hi wgustafson,

It varies from one management company to another. You might benefit from hiring a lawyer to interpret the management contract and determine what the exact responsibilities of the company are. Moving forward, if you renew the contract or hire another company, it is good to clarify this portion of the contract.

Although some people use homeowner insurance to describe condo insurance as well, they are not the same.

Hope this helps.

[wgustafson]

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Thank you, yes it does confirm our thinking on the matter. The troublesome detail is that for nearly two decades they and their predecessor company (acquired by them) had screened insurance declarations to be sure they were HO-3, then at some point stopped doing so without notice. I’m sure they want to avoid liability for a mistake (don’t we all), but that’s why Errors & Omissions insurance policies are written, it seems to us.

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