News

By Tim O’Meilia 

When Hurricanes Frances and Jeanne blustered into South Florida in 2004 and Wilma made a backdoor entrance in 2005, condominium associations — and their owners — learned hard lessons. 

Count ’em: how to reach absent owners to gain entrance to their condos, where to get emergency repairs, which contractors to trust and how to deal with insurance companies, just to name a few.

For a condo board member — almost all of whom are volunteers — the storm’s aftermath could be worse than the hurricane itself. 

As a result, the Fort Lauderdale-based law firm of Becker & Poliakoff, which specializes in condominium and community association law, is offering a free, two-hour seminar on “Disaster Preparedness: Are You Ready to Weather the Storm?” at 10 a.m. Sept. 8 at the Highland Beach Library, 3618 S. Ocean Drive, Highland Beach.

The seminar is directed at association board members and condo managers, but residents also are welcome. 

“One of the big problems we learned from the storms of 2004 and 2005 is that people didn’t understand which insurance covers what. What does homeowner’s insurance cover and what does the association’s insurance cover?” said community association attorney Lisa Magill. 

Another problem is maintaining communication with unit owners. Lacking the ability to enter a water-soaked apartment, for example, can result in more damage. 

Attorney William Strop, an insurance expert, recommends appointing an information coordinator ahead of time to funnel information through and squelch rumors. 

“I live in a condo and whenever there’s no clear flow of information, conspiracy theories abound,” Strop said. “People are sure that so-and-so is getting preferential treatment. Whenever there is no information, people figure something bad is happening.”

Another problem uncovered after previous storms was that associations had not planned for repairs after a catastrophe. 

“The board members were so overwhelmed and so anxious to get started with repairs that they signed contracts that put their associations at risk financially later,” Magill said. 

Common mistakes included signing open-ended contracts for work beyond emergency repairs that left the association with the bill if insurance didn’t cover it all. Some boards panicked and signed with out-of-area contractors, leaving them little recourse later if the work was faulty.

Strop and Magill suggest making arrangements ahead of time with local contractors for emergency work only.

“Do not start significant work until the insurance company has a chance to send an adjustor to appraise the situation first,” Strop said.

That doesn’t preclude halting water or other on-going damage and boarding up areas where more damage could result. Taking before and after photos of buildings, common areas and landscaping can help avoid insurance hassles later.

“Often overlooked is having maintenance and repair records,” Magill said. “Without them, insurance companies could say some damage was the result of lack of maintenance or the damage was pre-existing.”

Both urge that condo associations and unit owners have copies of their records stored somewhere off-site that will survive a storm. More and more associations are digitizing their records so they can be stored in cyberspace. 

Blueprints and as-built construction records are critical to avoid more expense during reconstruction. Contractors won’t have to be hammering through walls looking for utility lines or pipes. 

“We’re all crossing our fingers hoping we don’t have to deal with any of that this year,” Magill said, “but you have to be prepared.”

To attend the free seminar, call (954) 987-4550 to
register. Ú