Insurance news and information

Community association boards often waver between doing what’s expected of the community per the bylaws and what’s right to do. Case in point – pets. Many communities prohibit pets for obvious reasons: the noise, the smell, the additional stress on the lawns and property, etc. But holding a strict line could land your association in legal hot water.

 That’s because some homeowners require the use of service animals. Seeing-eye dogs are the obvious exception to your board’s rules. And the exception should be made, because to deny a disabled person the right to animal assistance is in direct violation of federal and state disability legislation. But some pet owners are going to great lengths to claim disabilities in order to keep pets that wouldn’t otherwise fall under the definition of a service animal.  What about a service monkey to assist the disabled, or a guide horse for the blind?   It’s an area of the law that lacks clear definition, and while the Department of Justice has a proposal pending that would exclude exotic animals (such as snakes or other wild animals, there’s no clear legal precedent to follow.

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Flickr Photo Credit: MeijerGardens

It takes just a cursory glance at the news to realize that many organizations have been victims of crime perpetrated by their employees or board members. Tales of treasurers absconding with funds, board members accused of bid rigging, or groundskeepers pilfering equipment abound. There are also numerous incidents of residents, property visitors, or neighbors causing damage or stealing property. There’s no excuse – condo and homeowner associations need crime coverage.

While typically associations purchase fidelity bonds – coverage that responds to employee embezzlement, forgery, or theft – this coverage does not respond to the acts of outsiders not covered specifically under the bond. Also not covered is theft of a client’s property while in the association’s “care, custody, or control.” So if association fees paid are stolen by an outsider from the company vault, fidelity bonds will not respond. Read more…