Friday, November 15, 2013

HOAs BEWARE: Being Litigious Can Cost the Association Its Insurance

Many of my blogs discuss the unfair advantage homeowner and condo associations have in disputes with homeowners. These unfair advantages are the result of the high cost of litigation and, in the case of HOAs, lack of regulation by the State of Florida.  Let's face it -- rather than pay tens or hundreds of thousands of dollars to litigate a dispute with an association, it's cheaper to comply with their demands.  

This scenario may be changing.  In the past two months I have learned of two associations who are now facing high deductibles and high premiums for the association's insurance because the association decided to aggressively litigate.  It seems the insurance companies are evaluating the risks these associations are taking and the liability it exposes for the insurance companies.  We can only hope more insurance companies take this approach because it could have the effect of lowering the number of cases being brought by associations.