Hurricane Ian, HOA ran out of money, my ins not paying Joan Smith asked 1 month ago
Hurricane Ian, HOA ran out of money, my ins not paying

My condo in Fort Myers, Florida took on seven feet of water during Hurricane Ian three years ago. My condo HOA also had flood insurance and began the restoration process. Their adjuster was thorough in his reports, and the HOA was paid for upgrades in my unit. However, the HOA ran out of funds, and I am now left to complete the remaining work.

My insurance company is telling me that if the HOA was paid for certain items, they will not pay me for anything the HOA was paid for. For the past three years, I was led to believe that my insurance would pay for anything that was not restored to like kind or quality after the HOA completed its work.

They are now saying they will not pay me for the building portion at all. I did receive payment for contents three years ago. Shouldn’t they be required to pay the gap between what the HOA was able to complete with its funds and what was actually needed to restore the unit?

I also understand that some items cost more than what the HOA’s adjuster allowed for. If I can prove the actual costs were higher, would my insurer be required to pay the difference?

Thank you. I just want to move on from this nightmare.

1 Answers
Rick Tutwiler Rick Tutwiler Expert answered 2 weeks ago
0 Vote Up Vote Down

Hi Joan,

Condo flood claims can get complicated when the HOA’s flood insurance overlaps with a unit owner’s coverage, especially when repairs start but aren’t completed.

Your insurer is generally allowed to avoid paying for items that were already paid for under the HOA’s flood claim (to prevent “double recovery”). However, that does not mean you are out of options if work remains unfinished, under-scoped, or never repaired.

A good next step is to request from your HOA the flood claim estimate, scope of work, and proof of what was paid for your unit. Then compare that to what was actually completed. This will help you clearly identify the gap. You are essentially creating a ‘summary of the differences’ between what was paid to the HOA versus what was paid to you.

Once you have that documentation, you can submit a supplemental claim for covered building items that were not repaired or paid for, supported by photos, contractor bids/invoices, and a simple side-by-side “summary of differences.”

UP has some great resources regarding flood insurance basics, here:

https://uphelp.org/claim-guidance-publications/flood-insurance-claim-basics/

Should you want to secure professional assistance, we encourage you to start with our ‘Professional Help’ directory to find licensed professionals in your area.

https://uphelp.org/recovery/professional-help-directory/

We also had another consumer ask a similar question regarding their damage, which you may find useful.

https://uphelp.org/ask-an-expert/question/dueling-policies-my-own-property-ins-vs-my-hoa-policy/

All the best, Rick T.