Condominiums and Third-Parties

YOU SAID "REAL ESTATE"

The real estate sector is subject to a specific regulatory and legal framework. QUARTZ Assurances offers real estate professionals tailored insurance products that meet the requirements and particularities of the various professions: Property dealers, Property administrator, Co-ownership trustee, Property manager, Real estate agent, Property owner, etc.

Insurance of co-ownership lots

Insurance relating to Construction insurance (Damage to Structures, all site risks) and to renovation and rehabilitation operations.

Civil liability insurance for the real estate, property development and merchant trades.

How to insure your co-ownership?

Compulsory insurance

Since the Alur law it is compulsory to insure condominiums. Two insurances overlap: multi-risk "building" insurance and civil liability insurance for owner-occupiers and co-owner lessors. Article 9-1 stipulates that "Each syndicate of co-owners is required to insure against the risks of civil liability for which it must answer".
The co-ownership trustee is therefore now obliged to have a co-owners civil liability insurance contract voted at the general meeting. In the event of a positive vote, the trustee can take out insurance on behalf of the syndicate of co-owners (article L 112-1 of the Insurance Code).
At the same time, article 9-1 of the law of March 24, 2014 also imposed the obligation of insurance for co-owners whether they are occupants or not.
Each co-owner is required to insure himself against the risks of civil liability for which he must respond in his capacity either as an occupying co-owner or as a non-occupying co-owner. The lessor co-owner must take out non-occupant insurance, commonly called PNO. This insurance aims to cover mainly the damage caused by the equipment and installations of the accommodation in the absence of a responsible tenant.

Who takes out condominium insurance?

Insurance taken out by the trustee. Of course, it is not the co-owners who directly take out the insurance. It is the trustee, agent of the co-ownership, who will be responsible for contracting the appropriate insurance. After having had several quotes made and then submitted to the co-ownership council. Before insuring the building, the insurer will ask for a statement of claims that have arisen and paid for over the past three years.
Surcharges. To make the estimate, several parameters will be taken into account: situation in sensitive areas, exposure to a natural risk or not, presence of shops on the ground floor (garage, mini-market, restaurant, etc.). Anything that may worsen the loss experience will also be taken into account. Depending on the level observed, additional premiums may be considered. Two solutions are then possible: either the entire co-ownership bears the weight of the increase, or only the co-owner of the premises deemed to be at risk bears the additional premium. This provision must always be written into the condominium regulations.
The amount of the building's insurance prime meets the same rules as any other property to be insured. Its amount depends on the risk covered. The calculation is based on the developed area of the building. It is the total area of buildings taken outside the building walls, multiplied by the number of floors, plus the ground floor. Cellars and undeveloped attics will be reduced to 50% of the actual surface area, as well as parking lots and sheds.

Parties covered by condominium insurance

Most often, the building policy covers material damage affecting all buildings (common and private areas), as well as the civil liability of the co-owners. It also generally guarantees the arrangements made by each co-owner in his apartment: partition, plaster, electricity, parquet, closet, wallpaper ...
But it is sometimes limited to only the common areas and the liability incurred for them (for example, an elevator accident). In this case, you must insure the private parts and your liability for what concerns them. The best solution is to choose a comprehensive collective multi-risk contract covering both the common and private parts of the building. This also has the advantage of avoiding the conflicts that arise when a claim is forced to determine what is common and what is private, whereas the co-ownership regulations and the insurance contract do not have the same definition.

Risks covered by condominium insurance

The condominium insurance contract is neither more nor less than comprehensive home insurance extended to a building. The contract therefore groups together a number of basic guarantees that can be found in a classic contract for an individual.

Fire, explosions, attacks, acts of terrorism
Flight
Water damage
Theft, acts of vandalism
Broken glass
Machine breakdown
Public liability
Natural disasters / Storms / hurricanes / cyclones
Collapse
Legal protection for co-ownership
Damage insurance
Lessor insurance (ALUR law)

The basic guarantees of co-ownership insurance

The basic guarantees typically relate to fire, water damage or theft.

In the fire guarantee, the indemnity will correspond to the value of new reconstruction on the day of the loss of the guaranteed real estate. This means that the obsolescence of the building is not taken into account if it does not exceed a limit of 25 to 33% (fixed in the contract) of the reconstruction value of the property. When the age is equal to or below the limit set in the contract, the insurer will pay compensation equal to 100% of the reconstruction value.

The water damage concerned is pipe breaks, overflows, accidental leaks from non-underground pipes as well as infiltration through roofs, freezing of interior pipes, overflows, etc.

The storm, hail and snow will mainly affect the damage caused to the roof. This guarantee is systematically coupled with the fire risk. However, damage to shutters, shutters and verandas is excluded.

Natural disasters (flood, earthquake, avalanche, etc.) and acts of terrorism are also systematically covered. This guarantee will only come into play after the publication in the Official Journal of an interministerial decree noting the nature of a natural disaster of the event occurring in the municipality in question.

The theft guarantee will cover property damage caused by burglars such as the breakage of locks or doors ...

The breakage of windows and windows in the common areas of the building, glass walls that serve as a separation between the adjoining balconies which are common areas for private use ...

Legal protection:

A more often very useful which takes care of the legal costs in the event of procedure.

Civil Liability Insurance:

A tile falling on the road or a collapsing chimney or a tree being uprooted by a storm, who is responsible?

To cover the collective liability of the co-owners, the “civil liability” insurance intervenes.

It then covers all the co-owners when their responsibility is collectively engaged.

The personal civil liability of the co-owner covers the civil liability of each member of the property manager when a claim originates from his home or a member of his family.

It is for example a fire which started at his home and which spread in the residence.

The civil liability of the syndicate of co-owners covers it vis-à-vis each co-owner and can be engaged in the event of lack of maintenance of the common parts.

Additional protections

The basic guarantees of the contract can naturally be enriched by extensions which will most often be paid but useful. These covers are many and varied.

They range from the payment of accommodation costs if the building is deemed uninhabitable after a disaster, to the search for a water leak, to the costs of clearing the rubble or to the payment of fees. 'an expert appointed by the trustee.