Insurance and claims, from the damage to the payment

In a condo, nobody reads the insurance policy calmly: it comes out on the day water is running, with an owner on the phone and a managing agent to chase. That is why this guide starts from the claim rather than the cover — knowing who reports, within what deadline and under which policy decides the compensation far more reliably than reading the general terms.

1. 1

   The building policy: what it covers

   The condo association must be insured at least for its public liability, and in practice takes out a comprehensive building policy covering the common parts. Each owner, whether living there or letting, must insure their own liability.

   • The association’s public liability cover is compulsory, not optional.
   • The comprehensive policy adds damage to the common parts.
   • Excesses and caps matter as much as the list of covers.
   • The policy is voted at the meeting: ask for the detail before voting.

   Article 9-1 of the act of 10 July 1965

   Building insurance: cover and excess
2. 2

   Who pays what: building, lot, tenant

   The question that blocks all the others. The answer depends on where the damage originated — common part or private part — not on where the water appeared. A damaged ceiling on the third floor may fall to the upstairs neighbour’s policy, to the building’s, or to both.

   • The source of the leak names the policy, not the victim.
   • The tenant insures their occupation, the landlord their property.
   • Tracing the leak has its own cost-sharing rules.
   • The excess is still due, even once liability is established.

   Articles 9 and 14 of the act of 10 July 1965

   Water damage: who pays what
3. 3

   Reporting, without missing the deadline

   The reporting deadline is short and runs from the moment you know about the claim: five working days as a rule, two for theft, ten after a natural disaster order is published. A written, dated, costed report beats a phone call that leaves no trace.

   • Photograph and date everything before any repair work.
   • Write to the managing agent and the insurer the same day.
   • Keep quotes, invoices and messages from day one.

   Article L. 113-2 of the insurance code

   The water damage report template
4. 4

   Following the claim through to payment

   Between the report and the transfer there is the loss adjuster, the costing, sometimes a second opinion. This is the stage where files stall: nobody chases any more, and the claim eventually times out.

   • A followed file means a chase-up date at every stage.
   • An adjuster’s figure can be challenged, and a second opinion requested.
   • Action against the insurer is time-barred after two years.

   Article L. 114-1 of the insurance code

   Following a claim through to compensation
5. 5

   Damp and leaks: finding the source

   A damp patch is not a claim until its origin is established. Condensation, rising damp, a porous façade or a pierced pipe call neither for the same policy nor for the same works — and it is the diagnosis that determines the compensation.

   • A written diagnosis beats a theory shared at a board meeting.
   • Condensation is a ventilation matter, rarely an insurance one.
   • A recurring leak signals poor maintenance, not an accident.

   Article 14 of the act of 10 July 1965

   Damp and leaks: getting the diagnosis right
6. 6

   Waterproofing: claim or works to vote

   A flat roof at the end of its life produces repeated claims that the insurer eventually stops covering. Past a certain point, the only answer is a works vote: a policy compensates an accident, never wear and tear.

   • Normal wear and tear is not an insurable accident.
   • Cost the renewal before the insurer raises the premium or cancels.
   • Put the item in the multi-year plan rather than leak by leak.

   Articles 24 and 25 of the act of 10 July 1965

   Flat roof waterproofing: what to plan for
7. 7

   Natural disaster: a regime of its own

   Drought, flood, ground movement: compensation only opens once an order is published in the official journal for the municipality, and the report must follow within ten days. The excess is set by the State, not by the policy.

   • Without a published order for the municipality, no cover on this basis.
   • Ten days to report, counted from publication of the order.
   • Document cracks as soon as they appear, with dated photographs.

   Article L. 125-1 of the insurance code

   Cracks and drought: the natural disaster regime
8. 8

   Damage caused to third parties

   A fall on an icy path, a falling tile, a loose handrail: the association answers for damage caused by poor maintenance or a construction defect in the common parts. This is the heart of the compulsory public liability cover.

   • The association answers for poor maintenance of the common parts.
   • Clearing snow and signposting are duties of ordinary care.
   • A logged, dated incident protects the condo as much as the third party.

   Article 14 of the act of 10 July 1965, article 1242 of the civil code

   Snow and ice: where the condo’s liability lies
9. 9

   The liability of board members

   The board assists and checks: it does not decide in place of the general meeting, nor manage in place of the agent. That framing is exactly what protects it — exposure comes from a decision taken without a mandate, not from an opinion given.

   • The board assists and checks; it does not bind the association.
   • A delegation voted at the meeting must be written, bounded and capped.
   • Check that the building policy does cover board members.

   Article 21 of the act of 10 July 1965

   Board members: liability and insurance