Homeowners' Association Insurance

1. Construction characteristics of the building: year of construction, floor area, floors below and above ground, materials of the structure, water pipes, if it has green areas.
2. Characteristics of its use: housing, commercial premises, garages, gardens. As a first residence, vacation, owner-occupied, for rent, etc.
3. Condition of the building: what maintenance is carried out, if the pipes have been changed, if the façade or roof has been renovated, etc.
4. The sum insured must be sufficient to rebuild the insured building in its entirety. The value of the site is not taken into account, but all expenses from materials and labor to licenses and permits as well as professional and technical fees.

Depending on the description of the building and its uses, the most appropriate guarantees and coverages will have to be selected. Some examples:

1. A Civil Liability limit as high as possible, without sub-limits per victim or, if there are any, they should also be high. If there are employees on the farm, Employer’s Liability should be considered.
2. Rainwater seepage through roofs and facades
3. Spillage of liquids other than water if diesel fuel tanks are present
4. Excess water consumption due to pipeline failures
5. Ruin of the building due to works by third parties in the adjoining subsoil
6. Frost damage if the building is located in climatologically sensitive areas.

The coverages eligible for this election are usually: Water Damage, Water Damage Liability and Glass Breakage.

And this is an option that the community must decide: whether to assume and distribute among all the co-owners the risks that should be the isolated responsibility of each one or, on the contrary, it is preferable to have an insurance that exclusively covers the community risks, leaving each co-owner to assume his own risk. It does not seem fair that the community should have to manage and bear both premiums and claims for accidents for which it is not responsible. A careless neighbor who does not renovate, use or maintain his installations properly does not have to harm the rest of the co-owners or the community.

We generally recommend opting for the community guarantees in the community policy and that each co-owner takes out his own homeowner’s insurance.

Competition and modernization in insurance management have brought about a considerable drop in premiums and the incorporation of new guarantees and services that did not exist just a few years ago. It is convenient to keep an eye on the market and periodically check that the price we pay for our insurance is still competitive.

In the event of a claim, what is better: to have the company’s assistance or to have a different professional service provider intervene?

It is the same, whichever is more convenient for the community.

If the community or the administrator of the same one already has a maintenance company that knows the building and that has already demonstrated its efficiency in previous occasions, it would be the perfect candidate to continue solving the problems that arise. In this case the management of the insurance consists of valuing the damages and paying the corresponding indemnification, previous intervention of the expert if it is considered necessary by the characteristics of the loss or by its amount.

If the community prefers it, or needs it on an ad hoc basis, it is always possible to request the intervention of the repairers arranged by the company itself, who will solve the problem and pass the bill directly to the company, requesting the intervention of the expert if necessary.

It is very interesting to keep them, since the companies value the correct maintenance of the building at the time of establishing the premium of the insurance. A community with a certain age that has renovated the community or private pipes, replaced the roof or rehabilitated the façade and can prove it with the corresponding invoices will obtain better insurance conditions.

We ensure that there is a fair correspondence between the damages suffered and the compensation received by the community. We seek the greatest agility in the resolution of claims and represent the insured before the company always in defense of their rights. A team of experienced professionals, with negotiation skills and fluid relationship with the claims departments of the companies.