DeutschBGH judgement: In communities of property owners, all vouch for all
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When damage occurs to the property of a homeowners' association, the question of insurance quickly arises. Generally, the community is responsible for the whole house in case of water damage. This has now been decided by the Federal Supreme Court (BGH).
In the event of water damage that occurs in the area of the condominium, all condominium owners jointly bear the deductible agreed in the building insurance contract - subject to a deviating regulation. In individual cases, this can be several thousand euros.
The case in question involved a residential complex with several flats and a commercial unit. The community maintains a building insurance policy which, in addition to other risks, also covers tap water damage, a so-called linked building insurance policy. The insurance cover is for the entire building, without distinguishing between special and common property. In the past, water damage repeatedly occurred in the flats due to defective pipes (copper pipes), which amounted to around 85,000 euros in 2018 alone. The community has therefore been asserting claims in court against the company that laid the pipes for some time.
Up to now, in the event of water damage, the administrator commissioned a specialist company to repair the damage and paid the costs via the joint account. She makes a claim against the insurance company and apportions the costs, deducting the insurance payment, according to co-ownership shares - namely for damage in the area of the condominium. Due to the frequency of the damage, the insurance only reimburses about 25 percent of the costs.
The plaintiff, the owner of the commercial unit, wanted to achieve that the deductible in the case of damage to the condominium property of the residential units is borne solely by the owners of the residential units. However, according to the court, this could only be considered if there was an unfair burden on the plaintiff (BGH, 16.09.2022, Az.V ZR 69/21).
(Photo: © William Sang Hyun Cho, Pixabay)