I’ve had the opportunity to consult with several Condominium Association Boards after major storms like Hurricane Sally. Most of the conversation deals with recommendations for dealing with their insurance company adjuster and contractors that I would like to share with others who may benefit from the same information.  

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Q. I serve on a COA Board and we recently had a fire. Our property manager is telling us the contractor will handle everything, while some of us want to talk to a public adjuster. What is your perspective?

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This is about the time in the insurance claims settlement cycle that we start getting calls from property owners living in condos, who are looking for help following property damage to their building that impacted their unit. This often takes the form of damage to the unit owner’s property, including their personal property as well as items such as carpet, other types of floor covering, trim items such as door frames, baseboards, cabinets and the list goes on depending on the type and severity of the damage and the wording in their condominium documents. When a covered casualty event occurs, whether it is from wind, water, fire, or the dreaded “mold” word, the finger pointing starts and in many cases the unit owner is caught in the middle.

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After a meeting with the Board President of a Panama City Condominium Association, I had the chance to follow-up with some recommendations for dealing with their insurance company adjuster and contractors that I would like to share with others who may benefit from the same information.  

First, keep in mind that the Board has a fiduciary responsibility to the both the Association members and to itself. The Board will need to assign someone to manage all aspects of the claim to the very finish.  Whether that person be an individual or a committee, ideally that person(s) would need to be qualified and competent to get the association through this burdensome process.  By no means will this be an easy process and given the magnitude of this catastrophic Hurricane. These claims can get complicated and many will not be amicably resolved their claims to their satisfaction.

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Citizens Insurance is spending tons of policyholder premiums to pay its lawyer friends to fight these claims it clearly should be covering!! Citizens hit with a $12.7 million verdict, acted in monumental bad faith and as a result 500 people who own property in this community continue to suffer from a claim that has languished since 2007. It makes me wonder who is running this company, management or the attorneys?

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There is no questioning the devastation that a hurricane can bring.  From severe winds, flooding, wind driven rain, tornadoes, power outages, even the slightest hurricane can cause massive damage. This storm season is no different with Hurricanes Harvey, Irma and Maria incurring property insurance claims well outside their main core. 

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Florida’s condominium community, it’s heads up time up for this year’s hurricane season and the escalating threat as we approach the most active time for tropical storm development. A few new releases from some of the weather pundits raised the possibility of more tropical storms this year. This is the second time this year the threat level has been raised for an increase in tropical storms in 2017. One respected weather guru who publishes a daily blog is sharing his concerns about all the weather waves moving off of Africa. So as they say, game on! 

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Almost two months into the 2017 hurricane season, most of the pundits have upgraded the likely number of tropical storms we can expect in the Atlantic basin this year. Of course, these experts can never tell us when and where the storms will impact a particular geographic area, but what we all can do is prepare as best we can based on the location of the property at risk. Just as the mantra for successful real estate investment is location, location, location the same applies in a disaster recovery plan. Know your location, the risk you are exposed to and understand the exposure you are facing.

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Ken and Joan spent their working lives in public service, Ken as an educator, and Joan as a nurse. It was their dream to have a vacation home in a warm climate so they purchased a condominium in Bonita Springs, Florida. A contractor error caused a pipe break in a unit above theirs and entirely flooded their home with hundreds of gallons of water. They were notified and drove down to Florida to inspect the damage and meet with their insurance company. That’s when the insurance claim problems began.

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Not surprising are the calls we get from property owners living in condos, who are looking for help following property damage to their building that affected their unit. This often takes the form of damage to the unit owner’s property which often includes their personal property, i.e., contents, as well as items such as carpet, other types of floor covering, trim items such as door frames, baseboards, cabinets, and the list goes on depending on the type and severity of the damage and the wording in their condominium documents. When a covered casualty event occurs, whether it is water, fire, the dreaded “mold” word or some other peril, the finger pointing starts and in many cases, the unit owner is caught in the middle. 
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