More and more community associations are adding storage areas for their residents. Some buildings have only shelves or designated areas, but most have individual storage bins or lockers. When it comes to insurance, the question is: who is responsible for the storage area and who is responsible for the contents stored inside it?
Whether they are owned or leased, any bins, lockers, or shelves would be the responsibility of the building or property owner. The owner of the unit or the tenant is responsible for their contents in the storage area.
For example, when a leak from a unit owner causes damage to your stored contents, a common misconception is that your damaged property would be the responsibility of that unit owner. In most cases, this is not true. Generally, to determine who is responsible for the damage, consider what was damaged, rather than what caused the damage.
To protect yourself, we suggest an HO6 or an HO4 policy. An HO6 Policy is the insurance policy for a co-op or condominium owner, while an HO4 is the insurance policy for someone who is renting the unit. Both policies contain coverage referred to as Personal Property, also known as Contents. This would extend coverage for the contents in the storage area if they were damaged by a covered cause of loss.
For more information on who’s responsible for what, check out our “It’s Not Natural to Live in a Co-op or Condominium” Mackoul School class, and, of course, reach out to us anytime.
