Apartment house liability insurance
Apartment house liability insurance protects the Board of an apartment house and thus all the apartment owners against third party claims that are related to losses caused by acts or omissions of the apartment house. A person stumbling because of unsanded sidewalk, ice chunk suddenly falling from the roof, a big branch causing damage to parking vehicles – these are only a few examples of a situation where apartment house liability insurance can help to compensate the losses.
What is the apartment house liability insurance?
Insurance compensates property losses and personal injuries caused in relation with the possession of common ownership.
Claims submitted against apartment houses are mostly caused by the following:
- bashed or scratched vehicles because of heavy wind that caused garbage cans to move or heavy branches to fall;
- personal injuries or property losses caused by snow and ice falling from the roof or by falling roof details;
- water damages to apartments caused by ruptured pipeline.
See for detailed insurance terms and conditions here.
Insurance cover can or cannot be extended also to the owners of apartments. It depends on whether the apartment house has established a legal person for the management of common ownership. If the apartment house has an apartment association or a building society, the insurance cover may be extended also to losses caused to the owners of physical shares of the apartment association.
Apartment house liability insurance helps on behalf of the apartment association or the building society to compensate to homeowners the losses, for and to the extent of which the association or the society is legally responsible. Exclusions provided by the liability insurance contract are also essential. E.g. if an apartment is damaged by water leaking through the structure or because of a common ownership, but the apartment association is not responsible for the damage, the existence of home insurance is the only actual protection against incurred losses. Also, home insurance helps in situations where the victim and the person who caused the damage disagree.
Apartment house liability is principally the liability of all owners of physical shares. It compensates also the losses caused by an owner of physical share in relation with the possession of common ownership. Home liability insurance can be purchased with a deductible of 50 EUR. As the apartment house liability insurance does not cover the liability of a person as an owner of physical share (which is covered by home liability insurance), the personal investment of 20-25 EUR into home liability insurance contract is more reasonable and affordable than the payment for the apartment house liability insurance (with minimum deductible of 200 EUR). Finally, home liability insurance already includes the part of insurance cover that is purchased together with extended apartment house liability insurance.