2010 August
2010 August Vol. 8, No.8
Focus on...Insurance & Board Training
New Jersey is the Garden State ( After All)
Since 2000, New Jersey has experienced five federally declared disasters due to
flooding. Hurricane Ivan crashed ashore in July 2004 and quickly became a
category five hurricane. New Jersey residents were hit with intense rains,
causing millions of dollars in damages to homes and businesses. And the spring
floods in April of 2007 covered New Jersey in almost a foot of rain. Extensive
flooding destroyed land and property, causing every county in New Jersey to be
declared a federal disaster area. And flooding just this past spring continued
that pattern of extensive damage to the Garden State.
Read More
Insuring for Household Hazards
Mold—it’s an ugly four-letter word in more ways than one. Nobody wants to think about
the fact that this fungus can be found anywhere where water leaks or drainage
problems are present. Mold can cause serious damage to a co-op or condominium,
like ruining drywall, and is believed to trigger numerous health problems in
susceptible persons.
Read More
Are They Covered?
Mistakes happen. It’s a simple fact of life and a simple fact of doing business. That’s why issues of insurance are so important for condominium managers and boards
to take seriously. While it is easy enough to keep up to date on one’s own insurance, making sure the coverage of outside vendors and contractors is
in order can be trickier. We all want to believe that our landscapers or snow
removal teams or siding contractors are protected by insurance in the event of
an accident, but it’s not always easy to be sure. And if coverage is not in place, that’s the kind of mistake that can lead to million-dollar problems for an
association.
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The Proper Fit in Insurance
For any condominium or community association, there are certain types of
insurance that HOAs cannot live without. Generally those include: property,
liability, umbrella, D&O (with employment practices liability (EPL) insurance embedded in the
coverage), fidelity, equipment breakdown coverage or more commonly called
boiler and machinery (B&M), workers compensation, disability coverage, and when applicable,
environmental coverage.Homeowners should also purchase their own insurance to protect their valuables
and the contents inside the residence.
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Learning the Ropes
Co-op and condo board members are usually volunteers who give of their time and
expertise to help make sure their building or HOA is well-run and their
investment protected. In a perfect world, new board members are architecture graduate students who
moonlight as attorneys and work day jobs as CPAs. Indeed, many new board members are architects, engineers, lawyers, accountants,
or successful businesspeople—but the majority are folks from all walks of life who don't necessarily have
years of experience that is directly applicable to running an association, and
for these folks, some basic board training can be invaluable.
Read More
Getting Along, Getting it Done
Sometimes, just getting two people to agree on what to have for dinner or what
movie to see on a Saturday night can seem like an overwhelming task. Now
imagine trying to get five, seven or nine people to make million-dollar
decisions that can affect hundreds, even thousands, of people. That’s the challenge that faces co-op and condominium boards each and every day.
Read More
Keeping It in Reserve
Most people wouldn't buy a home without an attorney, or start a business without
an accountant. In the same way those professionals assist with complex legal
and financial processes, a civil engineer trained in the specific field of
design and construction can help your HOA navigate the budgeting and capital
improvement landscape by conducting a reserve study.
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Q&A:Politically-Speaking
Can a condo board legally prohibit any political activity by its residents? Most condo documents say that “the association shall not engage in any political activity.” The board usually interprets it to mean that there shall be no political activity by anyone. No one seems to have a definitive answer, even our attorney, as to who it refers to. Read More
Q&A: Should D&O Be Separate?
Our co-op has a question about our various insurance policies. Our insurance agent has recommended to the board that we keep our D&O coverage separate from our general liability coverage. I understand that some commercial general liability policies include D&O so is there a standard approach or policy for this type of scenario? Read More
Q&A: Liability After Theft
We have a security system at our clubhouse consisting of cameras and recording equipment. Recently we had some expensive television equipment stolen. Management informed us that the security system was not running/recording. The equipment is in the management office. As a board member, I would like to know who is responsible for assuring that this expensive security system is functioning properly? Read More
