Our Clients Ask Us: Flooding On Common Areas

Q: Due to recent flooding issues on common areas, water infiltrated one of the residences and damaged some of the interior. Is the Association responsible for the damage?

MAYBE. Depending on the particular situation, your governing documents should dictate what is an association responsibility and what constitutes an individual owner responsibility. That being said, if the Association, for example, failed to dredge a retention basin in accordance with normal maintenance, the association/board may be accused of being negligent in its duties to the owners and may be held responsible for the damage. Has the problem occurred in the past? Failure to fix drainage issues that caused flooding in the past may be construed as negligence.

However, if the flooding occurred on some type of natural waterway, it may be nearly impossible for the Association to intervene. If the entire city flooded, it is going to be difficult for someone to argue that the Association was somehow negligent in its duties. In this case, the Association would be responsible for any damage to the common elements and items that are Association responsibility, and the owner for repairs to their unit/home specified in the governing documents.

Especially if parts of your Association are in a flood plain, it is important that the Association maintain flood insurance. Keep in mind that many flood maps were redrawn this year. You can check flood maps at https://msc.fema.gov/.

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