Max and Ellen - The pros and Cons of contacting the insurance company

Started by JeanneH3 • 21 replies • 356 views

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JeanneH3 (North Carolina)
Posts: 158

Posted:

I didn't want to hijack another thread but I had noticed that Max had advocated for contacting the insurance carrier in the event of a situation where the BOD is making choices that would negatively affect insurance coverage, premiums, etc., whereas Ellen was advising to not contact the insurance carrier citing the complications of insurance policies.

Can we have a deeper discussion on the pros and cons of alerting your HOA's insurance carrier of obvious problems that could exempt coverage? I'll give a real life case. About 1.5 years ago our association's swimming pool gate key card reader malfunctioned allowing anyone to easily access the swimming area simply by pushing on the gate. I advocated on social media that the gate needed to be chained shut and guests/members redirected to the other gate. The BOD wouldn't do it. I had a face to face talk with the BOD president who told me to stop posting to Facebook because I was "scaring" the owners. I told him he was wrong to not chain the gate shut because it increased our liability considerably. Gate was never chained shut and stayed malfunctioned for a month during peak tourist season.

A second incident happened this past summer only it was the pool pump that malfunctioned. Signs saying "Pool CLosed" were hung on both gates but the gates never chained closed so we arrived in the heat of summer to find dozens of people swimming in the pool that had had no filtration or chemical santization in a week. We watched four adults on an upper walkway yell down to friends to not go into the pool, that everyone of them had gotten sick with diarrhea and vomiting after being in the pool. The pool then had the worst infestation of black algae on the pool plaster I had ever seen as a former aquatics facilities manager..."black algae" is actually a cryptobacterium that causes...wait for it....vomiting and diarrhea. The pool company had to power wash the pool plaster, underwater, to remove the numerous black areas and pitted the pool plaster. Pool had been left open to guests for nearly 2 weeks before the pump was replaced.

My choices are to call the health department and I've considered calling our insurance agent.

LayaS (Nebraska)
Posts: 249

Posted:

Quote:

Posted By JeanneH3 on 02/28/2023 5:22 AM
I didn't want to hijack another thread but I had noticed that Max had advocated for contacting the insurance carrier in the event of a situation where the BOD is making choices that would negatively affect insurance coverage, premiums, etc., whereas Ellen was advising to not contact the insurance carrier citing the complications of insurance policies.

Can we have a deeper discussion on the pros and cons of alerting your HOA's insurance carrier of obvious problems that could exempt coverage? I'll give a real life case. About 1.5 years ago our association's swimming pool gate key card reader malfunctioned allowing anyone to easily access the swimming area simply by pushing on the gate. I advocated on social media that the gate needed to be chained shut and guests/members redirected to the other gate. The BOD wouldn't do it. I had a face to face talk with the BOD president who told me to stop posting to Facebook because I was "scaring" the owners. I told him he was wrong to not chain the gate shut because it increased our liability considerably. Gate was never chained shut and stayed malfunctioned for a month during peak tourist season.

A second incident happened this past summer only it was the pool pump that malfunctioned. Signs saying "Pool CLosed" were hung on both gates but the gates never chained closed so we arrived in the heat of summer to find dozens of people swimming in the pool that had had no filtration or chemical santization in a week. We watched four adults on an upper walkway yell down to friends to not go into the pool, that everyone of them had gotten sick with diarrhea and vomiting after being in the pool. The pool then had the worst infestation of black algae on the pool plaster I had ever seen as a former aquatics facilities manager..."black algae" is actually a cryptobacterium that causes...wait for it....vomiting and diarrhea. The pool company had to power wash the pool plaster, underwater, to remove the numerous black areas and pitted the pool plaster. Pool had been left open to guests for nearly 2 weeks before the pump was replaced.

My choices are to call the health department and I've considered calling our insurance agent.

I'm obviously not who you directed your post to but I will share some advice I got from my insurance agent a few years ago when I brought up my concerns about owners' liability if someone drowned in one of the HOA ponds in the development. These ponds are mainly out in the open and there is not much monitoring of the ponds' use. One of them has a swimming dock that gets taken in and out of the water every season. I brought up the subject as an individual homeowner with my personal agent. Her suggestion was to buy an umbrella policy in addition to my homeowner's policy. This is just something to consider if your HOA board doesn't step up and fix the issues with your HOA pool. I don't have any thoughts on whether to contact the HOA's insurance agent or not. Or the health department.

CathyA3 (Ohio)
Posts: 6,299

Posted:

Also weighing in here. I question whether the insurance company would even talk to you since you're not the insured. I bet the insurance company's lawyers would tell them to clam up because liability risks and the potential for a conflict of interest - especially if there is a whiff of lawsuit in the air.

So there is that...

KellyM3 (North Carolina)
Posts: 2,239

Posted:

Jeanne,

Call the Health Department. The insurance company cannot enforce safety laws and health regulations. To call the insurance company puts you at risk of the insurer cancelling the policy BUT having the health department approve the pool operations for 2023. Then, the pool would be closed when your community wants to use it.

You would certainly be outted in your community if you made such a tactical error and make the HOA the "victim." Your complaints are at least a year old by now so they may not apply for this Summer.

ElleN (Idaho)
Posts: 4,420

Posted:

JeanneH3, can you link this other thread where you say I advised to not contact the insurance carrier? Or give me some key words to use in a search, like what particular infrastructure problem arose that resulted in your concern? Did you start this thread, or did someone else?

In your contemplation of contacting the HOA's insurer as an owner, what is your goal? To maybe get the insurance company to put pressure on the HOA to fix the problem?

Getting down to brass tacks: You feel the HOA is doing unsafe things. The HOA does not feel what it is doing is unsafe.

You can certainly do the research for what health regulations apply to NC HOA pools. You might very well find an agency that would have come down on the HOA for not chaining the gates last summer.

In general, I think the least difficult remedy for a board that is taking risks is to find owners who feel as you do and campaign to win a majority of the board seats. As you know from reading here, this is often not easy. But it's often easier, and certainly cheaper, than lawyering up.

MarkM19 (Texas)
Posts: 1,459

Posted:

Jeanne,
The best way to make changes in your HOA is to become a part of the board. It is not to be vocal on FB or nextdoor. Those sites are for the people who mainly complain and do nothing. Calling the Insurance company and ratting on your HOA is a terrible idea. They are probably taking notes about your complaints and will raise the rates first chance they get. You could very well mean well but do great harm.

Get involved and become a part of the board. Then instead of convincing your FB friends you will only have to convince a majority of your board. Its a much easier task and something can get done.

ND (PA)
Posts: 792

Posted:

Yes, please link or indicate topic title of the other thread you're referencing.

In regard to an individual homeowner reaching out the the HOA's insurance carrier, I can think of very few good things that would come of this and many more bad things.

The main instance where I can see it maybe necessary/appropriate for a homeowner to reach out to HOA insurance carrier is if a situation's associated risk to HOA, members, residents, others, and/or property is confirmed to be significantly high (high likelihood of occurrence, high severity of repercussions if it does occur) and the decision-makers are absolutely determined to do nothing about the situation.

That said, if you personally think something is a high risk, then it is incumbent upon you to advocate for that issue and get people on your side to force action. If you lack support for your position, then you've either not done enough to convince others of the issue or others do not agree with you.

JohnC46 (South Carolina)
Posts: 14,265

Posted:

Quote:

Posted By MarkM19 on 02/28/2023 8:05 AM
Jeanne,
The best way to make changes in your HOA is to become a part of the board. It is not to be vocal on FB or nextdoor. Those sites are for the people who mainly complain and do nothing. Calling the Insurance company and ratting on your HOA is a terrible idea. They are probably taking notes about your complaints and will raise the rates first chance they get. You could very well mean well but do great harm.

Get involved and become a part of the board. Then instead of convincing your FB friends you will only have to convince a majority of your board. Its a much easier task and something can get done.

Good advice.

SheliaH (Indiana)
Posts: 6,964

Posted:

What Mark and ElleN said.

Although you do raise valid concerns about the HOA's liability because everyone would have to pay if something happens and the association gets sued, you could have attended a board meeting and expressed your concerns – and perhaps offer to do some research to present to the board so I could make an informed decision about what to do next. It’s not enough to complain on Facebook, and frankly, social media can be a bad place to get any information because many people are on there with an agenda, and others don’t think much about the issue beyond certain red meat type words that get everyone riled up and nothing gets done.

Social media has been a blessing and a curse - it's really useful in informing lots of people about important situations that may fly under the weather, but they’re also full of innuendo, name calling, and damned lies. You've seen various articles where people have lost their jobs and reputations have taken a hit because they shot off their mouths on Facebook or Instagram and didn’t know what the hell they were talking about. Yes, you do have a right to free speech, but rights come with responsibilities and consequences, and you’d better have a good idea and accept what you say may not have the effect you want. Even if you’re right – people always shave a problem with the truth, even though they claim that’s what they want.

Personally, I think a better approach might be to talk to the HOA insurance company and get some guidance on how to conduct a risk analysis for the community (the board, not you - unless you're going to volunteer to help out – and then they’ll tell you what they need). Start with this article: https://www.hoamanagement.com/risk-management-for-hoa/
This way, you'll identify problem areas, prioritize them as to what might cause the most problems if they aren't addressed sooner rather than later, and then make plans on how to address them. It may mean the board will have to make some tough decisions people won't like, but that's how life rolls.

And if your board blows you off, you know the rest – take Mark’s advice and find like-minded neighbors to run for a spot on the board (or several) and then you can run the community the way your neighbors like (at least a majority). Of course, that also means you may find yourself in the hot seat when things go sideways, so make up your mind on how far you want to go, and good luck to you.

If it is not right do not do it; if it is not true do not say it. Marcus Aurelius

LayaS (Nebraska)
Posts: 249

Posted:

The consensus so far is not to contact the HOA's insurance company. And that voting in a new board or find like-minded people who agree with you. I see it as more urgent than some. It does take time to get the board changed or finding like-minded people to speak up.

At the very least, can you advise the board to put padlocks on the gates so no one can enter the pool area without the key. I am with you, I feel pool safety should be a top priority. That is one reason why I chose an HOA with no pool or water features. I considered it, but my practical side won out. I will say it again, it might be prudent to discuss the situation with your own personal insurance agent and take out some extra liability insurance.

JeanneH3 (North Carolina)
Posts: 158

Posted:

Quote:

Posted By ElleN on 02/28/2023 7:16 AM
JeanneH3, can you link this other thread where you say I advised to not contact the insurance carrier? Or give me some key words to use in a search, like what particular infrastructure problem arose that resulted in your concern? Did you start this thread, or did someone else?

In your contemplation of contacting the HOA's insurer as an owner, what is your goal? To maybe get the insurance company to put pressure on the HOA to fix the problem?

Getting down to brass tacks: You feel the HOA is doing unsafe things. The HOA does not feel what it is doing is unsafe.

You can certainly do the research for what health regulations apply to NC HOA pools. You might very well find an agency that would have come down on the HOA for not chaining the gates last summer.

In general, I think the least difficult remedy for a board that is taking risks is to find owners who feel as you do and campaign to win a majority of the board seats. As you know from reading here, this is often not easy. But it's often easier, and certainly cheaper, than lawyering up.

It was this thread https://www.hoatalk.com/Forum/tabid/55/forumid/1/postid/344853/view/topic/Default.aspx titled "Board knowingly doing things against the Gov Docs".

I'm trying to get on the board and ran last November. However, the election in early November 2022 was, err... "irregular". The annual meeting notice agenda mentioned only "nominations of members to the BOD", no mention of an election; the board nomination form included in the notice packet stated clearly that the election was AFTER the meeting; in the prior two years when there were contested elections (more candidates than seats) there was mail in ballot voting AFTER the meeting. That did not happen at the last meeting in November when there were 5 candidates for 3 seats. The MC orchestrated voting electronically about halfway through the meeting and quickly announced the results that the BOD president, who held all the proxies and used them to vote himself and his three BOD cronies back into office. The proxies had a time limit of only being valid DURING the meeting and had the election been held AFTER, they could not have been used to vote in the board election. Owner members who received the notice packet were led to believe their proxy would be used for reaching quorum as well as ratifying the budget since the agenda clearly stated voting for the board election was AFTER the meeting when the proxies were no longer valid. There are at least 2 state statutes that were violated to pull off this "election".

I was naive about state laws regarding how HOA elections are to be executed. I knew something was off but I did not have the power of knowledge to know what was happening was illegal. I've since educated myself and my challenge is to educate my neighbors as to what happened and why it was legally wrong. I know many posters here revert to the same old mantra of "Run for the board" to solve problems but it isn't that easy when there is an entrenched board and MC that will knowingly violate the law to retain power.

JeanneH3 (North Carolina)
Posts: 158

Posted:

Quote:

Posted By KellyM3 on 02/28/2023 6:37 AM
Jeanne,

Call the Health Department. The insurance company cannot enforce safety laws and health regulations. To call the insurance company puts you at risk of the insurer cancelling the policy BUT having the health department approve the pool operations for 2023. Then, the pool would be closed when your community wants to use it.

You would certainly be outted in your community if you made such a tactical error and make the HOA the "victim." Your complaints are at least a year old by now so they may not apply for this Summer.

In the second incident I did call the Health Department and it turns out a rental guest had also reported the nasty pool to the Health Department. I've resolved to contact the Health Department in future swimming pool issues that increase our liability since the BOD has a track record of not wanting the drama associated with closing a pool in peak rental season.

ElleN (Idaho)
Posts: 4,420

Posted:

Quote:

Posted By JeanneH3 on 02/28/2023 11:20 AM
I know many posters here revert to the same old mantra of "Run for the board" to solve problems but it isn't that easy when there is an entrenched board and MC that will knowingly violate the law to retain power.

No, it is not easy. You have read here enough to know your options.

I do consider the situations you described above to be urgent. In view of everything, and from experience with rogue boards, I would be thinking about moving. If I could not move, I would try to assess my options realistically, a la Cathy's frequent counsel here.

SheliaH (Indiana)
Posts: 6,964

Posted:

I'm not yelling at you, but what made you think this would be easy? Frederick Douglass once said "power concedes nothing without a demand" and if this board and the president is as entrenched as you say, they're not going to go away quickly or quietly. Normally, I'd say the property manager shouldn't have a dog in the fight because they have to work at the board's direction regardless of who it is, but we know some management companies love HOA boards that let them do all their thinking for them. The homeowners are still the ones in control - it's just a matter of them believing it and exerting their control. It's unfortunate that in some cases it takes a group of neighbors to pass the hat for an attorney to twist the board's collective arm to behave, but nothing will change until the homeowners decide enough is enough.

.As for the proxies, there have been several conversations on them lately. They're badly written, people don't read before signing, turn them in late or give them to the wrong people who may accidentally on purpose get rid of them or not vote the way you want them to (remember, proxies vote on your behalf, so if you're going to trust, say, a board member, to speak for you, you might want to have a discussion with him or her about your expectations. Or just show up at the meeting yourself - I don't understand why people can't seem to make time to show up for what will likely be a one-hour meeting once a year. And yes, I'm including the out-of-town homeowners on that. At least give the proxy to someone you know.

So - keep educating yourself, talking to your neighbors and holding the board's feet to the fire. Talking to the neighbors is important because if they accompany you to those meetings, it'll be harder for the board to blow off a group of people, especially if that group gets bigger and bigger. You never know - if the president is the real idiot here, maybe his/her colleagues will grow a pair and vote to name another president (the president would still be on the board because only you the homeowners can vote him off, but at least some of the power goes away.

If it is not right do not do it; if it is not true do not say it. Marcus Aurelius

JeanneH3 (North Carolina)
Posts: 158

Posted:

Quote:

Posted By SheliaH on 02/28/2023 11:55 AM
You never know - if the president is the real idiot here, maybe his/her colleagues will grow a pair and vote to name another president (the president would still be on the board because only you the homeowners can vote him off, but at least some of the power goes away.

The more I dig, the more "curiously odd" things I keep finding. There is a cadre of owners who are tribally loyal to the president and part of that is because he uses selective enforcement of rules and regulations to give those who genuflect in his presence exemptions from the rules. But he'll use the exact same rule to threaten another owner....I've got the texts and emails from both owners now in my possession. Facts mean nothing to this cadre and unfortunately they are quite vocal on social media.

NC legislature changed Chapter 47C statutes in 2020, one of which changed the way in which owners can remove a director. Previously it required a 67% vote of the entire owners whereas now it is only a majority vote of those in attendance at a meeting. The question I still haven't been able to get an answer is how do we compel the MC and the BOD to put a vote to remove a director on the annual meeting agenda?

ElleN (Idaho)
Posts: 4,420

Posted:

Quote:

Posted By JeanneH3 on 02/28/2023 12:39 PM
The question I still haven't been able to get an answer is how do we compel the MC and the BOD to put a vote to remove a director on the annual meeting agenda?

Assuming the director you want removed is not up for re-election and so cannot simply be voted off the board in the usual way at the annual meeting, you would want to ask for a special meeting of the membership.

The Condo Act at 47C-3-108 says 20% of owners can petition for a special meeting, unless the bylaws specify a lower number.

With a rogue board in particular, people here have long advised to only attempt a special meeting using an attorney. I agree.

Here's the section of 47C that supports what JeanneH3 said about removal of a director:
"Notwithstanding any provision of the declaration or bylaws to the contrary, the unit owners, by a majority vote of all persons present and entitled to vote at any meeting of the unit owners at which a quorum is present, may remove any member of the executive board with or without cause, other than members appointed by the declarant."

MarkM19 (Texas)
Posts: 1,459

Posted:

Jeanne,
Getting rid of the rogue board president is easier than most people think. I did it many years ago in Ca. I had lots of data and Facts of the wrong doings that were done by the president and supported by the weak board members. I was on the board at the time and was in the minority. I put together all of my facts and gave him a chance to step away during our board meetings. I told him that if he didn't, I would send this data in a compressed form out to the owners and let them decide if he deserved to be on the board. I sent out a detailed one-page information sheet to every owner at my own expense of about $1.00 per home. I stated that if anyone wanted to meet me, I could provide all of the volumes of data that was collected "The Facts". Several of his supporters said I could be sued for liable. My response to all was you can't be sued for telling the truth. I had the Facts.

The difference between you and I was I was willing to do the work and when I was successful and then elected board president make the changes to right the ship. This is much easier during elections when the president is up for reelection. Every HOA has voting apathy and it only takes a small percentage of the HOA to get someone elected. Getting 50% or 67% of the owners to agree it is daytime in the morning is difficult.

JeanneH3 (North Carolina)
Posts: 158

Posted:

Quote:

Posted By MarkM19 on 02/28/2023 1:10 PM
Jeanne,
Getting rid of the rogue board president is easier than most people think. I did it many years ago in Ca. I had lots of data and Facts of the wrong doings that were done by the president and supported by the weak board members. I was on the board at the time and was in the minority. I put together all of my facts and gave him a chance to step away during our board meetings. I told him that if he didn't, I would send this data in a compressed form out to the owners and let them decide if he deserved to be on the board. I sent out a detailed one-page information sheet to every owner at my own expense of about $1.00 per home. I stated that if anyone wanted to meet me, I could provide all of the volumes of data that was collected "The Facts". Several of his supporters said I could be sued for liable. My response to all was you can't be sued for telling the truth. I had the Facts.

The difference between you and I was I was willing to do the work and when I was successful and then elected board president make the changes to right the ship. This is much easier during elections when the president is up for reelection. Every HOA has voting apathy and it only takes a small percentage of the HOA to get someone elected. Getting 50% or 67% of the owners to agree it is daytime in the morning is difficult.

You make assumptions too easily about what I have or have not done. We created a committee to begin communicating with owners and getting them up to speed on the issues. We spent nearly 2 months wrangling with the MC to get a mailing list of owners and addresses that we had a lawful right to obtain. The BOD was so against us getting the mailing list that they emailed the owners warning them that an owner had obtained the mailing list and they would not endorse the contents of anything mailed to them by us. Next was the creation of a blog that is well designed, fact based, no emotion or speculation. It's pure data. I spend a considerable amount of time researching and acquiring information, such as town documents or getting accurate quotes from town officials on issues pertaining to our HOA. We then used the mailing list to send concise letters to all the owners about the main issues and directing them to the blog for more information at our expense. Included was a response card and we've been receiving them back in the mail. There is also a committee Facebook group for basically announcing new content on the blog. The BOD sent yet another email to all the owners naming me and my husband specifically and stated so many falsehoods it will take me 3 blog posts to deconstruct and refute, with facts, them all. I have tried to view the BOD as lazy, inept, or ignorant but this email sent to all the owners shows an intentional deceit about the past Board elections that is so easily refuted with the facts.

There has been only two board meeting minutes posted in the past 4 years; it's been 3.5 months since the board election and still no publication, as required by law within 30 days, of the new board officer roles and BOD contact information but within a month the BOD has sent 2 emails specifically addressing our committee's actions in a negative way. Hmmmm....

What you may not have encountered but we have are owners who form a cadre of support for the president and they are very vocal. The BOD has acquired this loyalty by at least 2 ways we know of. One is to talk individually with these people about BOD thoughts, decisions, etc making them included in his clique of knowledgeable owners while not revealing any of this by minutes to the entire association. This became apparent during the shed storage project when we've discovered that a small subset of owners knew about the shed project in April but all of the owners were not aware until announced at the November annual meeting. The second way is via the abuse of the Rules. Our HOA rules prohibit, very explicitly, any owner storage in the common areas. Yet 2 weeks ago we received an email from an owner who had asked the BOD president if he could put, not one but two, large storage containers in the common area under a building that is not his, he got that permission and his storage boxes have been there for 4 years. Another owner who actually owns in the same building and had placed a storage box in the common area near his parking was threatened by the BOD president to remove it. The only difference I can see between these two owners is one genuflected to the president and the other didn't. A second owner has come forward to claim he was told to remove his storage container and threatened with a fine if he did not.

CathyA3 (Ohio)
Posts: 6,299

Posted:

It sounds like you're up against a skillful politician.

If I were in your position, I would be asking myself if my community provided some unique benefits that would justify my having to up my political game and probably play that game for the entirety of my tenure on the board (because the really hard work actually starts after you've won the election). Or is there another community where I could live happily and not spend my life fighting all the time? I personally would not be up for building a cadre of followers in the community. I'm an introvert with a lot of skills in areas that play to my strengths, but I'll never be a politician like the board president in your community. I can be a successful board member, but in a situation like yours I wouldn't be a happy one - and frankly I'm too old to waste the time that's left to me being miserable if I have a choice about it.

Obviously everyone will assess this situation differently. A young, energetic extrovert with political skills may well say "game on" and start building their coalition.

MarkM19 (Texas)
Posts: 1,459

Posted:

Jeanne,
Thanks for the follow-up. The people on this site only know what we read here. Yes, we sometimes have to fill in the blanks to try and figure out what was left unsaid.

Seems like you have done a lot and yet still have more left to this battle. As Cathy stated it really depends how much fight you have left. No one wants to move but your choices are few here. You either need to check in or check out. I am imagining that you have your share of crooked politicians in your City or State. You probably tend to ignore those politicians by not watching the news and holding your nose when you go vote. You can do the same thing in your HOA.

JeanneH3 (North Carolina)
Posts: 158

Posted:

Quote:

Posted By CathyA3 on 03/01/2023 5:37 AM
It sounds like you're up against a skillful politician.

If I were in your position, I would be asking myself if my community provided some unique benefits that would justify my having to up my political game and probably play that game for the entirety of my tenure on the board (because the really hard work actually starts after you've won the election). Or is there another community where I could live happily and not spend my life fighting all the time? I personally would not be up for building a cadre of followers in the community. I'm an introvert with a lot of skills in areas that play to my strengths, but I'll never be a politician like the board president in your community. I can be a successful board member, but in a situation like yours I wouldn't be a happy one - and frankly I'm too old to waste the time that's left to me being miserable if I have a choice about it.

Obviously everyone will assess this situation differently. A young, energetic extrovert with political skills may well say "game on" and start building their coalition.

One of the more interesting developments I haven't shared yet here is what has happened with the storage shed project. Fascinating. BOD announced the purchase of 24 4X6X6 sheds, with plans to buy as many as 60, to be placed under the buildings and sold and rented to owners. No input from owners and the annual meeting got quite contentious with the BOD president taking a clear side in favor of the sheds and intimidating anyone who questioned it. Legitimate questions were ignored. Only 50% of owners would have gotten a shed. By late Nov. the fire inspector puts a stop work order on the sheds citing fire code violations as well as the news that the BOD had not bothered to file any applications for permits with the town to install these large sheds. I keep checking the online data base to see if a permit application appears but never does. BOD finds out that all the sheds cannot be placed under hte buildings or in parking spaces leaving literally no where else to put them. BOD reveals in January 14 minutes that they had authorized the MC to contact the town about the legality of large owner storage units under the buildings. This triggers a further examination of the permit records and the Town informs the BOD that the complex had only been originally permitted 17 years ago for parking, not parking and storage. Not only their sheds had to go, everything had to be removed in 30 days. Owners' deck boxes, bikes, kayaks, chairs, storage closets, boogie boards...it all had to go.

The drama on social media has been angry and active. Some blame me and husband for tattling to the town even though there's no evidence we did. Others are furious because they want their storage and they don't care how many laws have to be broken to have it. And some rightly place the blame on the BOD for not applying for the permits at all. Because this has riled so many owners I've been using the situation to drive home that this was an example of a failure of fiduciary responsibility wasting $$$$$$ on sheds that cannot be used, exposing the association to insurance liability, out of control BOD doing whatever they wanted to the owners' detriment, etc. It is interesting to see how this plays out eventually.

This is one of the resources I'm using to convince owners that the BOD had an obligation to file for permits: https://www.hoaleader.com/public/Does-CondoHOA-Have-Heightened-Duty-Get-Permits-Use-Licensed-Pros.cfm

Thanks all for your time in responding.

ElleN (Idaho)
Posts: 4,420

Posted:

Quote:

Posted By JeanneH3 on 03/01/2023 9:59 AM

Others are furious because they want their storage and they don't care how many laws have to be broken to have it.

The location of the storage units underneath buildings is a safety issue and prohibited by code (because of safety concerns), right? You have my support in calmly, tactfully but firmly dressing down anyone who has a problem with your actions. This is about safety and duly recognized as such by the city and the building code. This is about risking liability.

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