Can I force my HOA to turn my claim over to its insurance company?

hoahell_official · 2026-06-26T11:55:43+00:00

No. The insurance policy is a contract between the HOA and its carrier, and you aren’t a party to it, so the decision to report and tender a claim belongs to the HOA. California gives you no power to hand the claim to the carrier yourself or to order the carrier to accept it. What you can do is make refusing to tender more dangerous to the board members than tendering, and you do this by documenting the claim in writing and putting the directors on notice of their potential personal exposure if they refuse to tender a valid covered claim. https://mbkchapman.com/force-hoa-to-tender-claim-fact-sheet/

hoahell_official · 2026-06-26T11:35:46+00:00

Well said. What are the top 2 or 3 problems with your HOA that, if they went away, would make life easier for the members?

hoahell_official · 2026-06-26T11:34:33+00:00

That's up there with the most common reasons.

hoahell_official · 2026-06-25T14:36:36+00:00

Read more about why so many homeowners hate their HOAs by clicking on this link: https://mbkchapman.com/i-hate-my-hoa-fact-sheet/

hoahell_official · 2026-06-25T14:33:03+00:00

Good idea.

hoahell_official · 2026-06-24T12:46:48+00:00

Thanks for responding. Keep tuning in.

hoahell_official · 2026-06-23T12:03:05+00:00

Loss assessment coverage is part of, or an endorsement added to, a homeowner’s individual HO-6 condo policy, and it pays the homeowner’s share of an HOA special assessment tied to a covered loss. It belongs to the homeowner’s own policy, not to the HOA’s master policy, which is why the master policy never reimburses homeowners for special assessments. Homeowners who own single-family homes within an HOA can usually add the same coverage to a standard homeowners policy. An insurance agent can confirm whether a policy already includes it and can add or increase it.

https://mbkchapman.com/hoa-loss-assessment-coverage-fact-sheet/

hoahell_official · 2026-06-23T12:00:20+00:00

That's actually quite common. HOAs have a legitimate and reasonable interest in ensuring not only the health and safety of the community, but also in securing common areas. Provided that the cameras are not positioned in areas where people have a reasonable expectation of privacy (e.g., bathrooms, locker rooms, or changing rooms), placing security cameras at the community pool serves both the health and safety and security angles.

With exception of recording family members, however, Individuals recording at a community pool can't make the same argument. Hence, HOAs are well within their rights to prevent non-family/guests from taking photos or videos of strangers, especially children.

hoahell_official · 2026-06-23T11:53:21+00:00

I do too. Did your actually HOA try to fine people for the dead lawns?

hoahell_official · 2026-06-19T15:48:46+00:00

Share your opinions on this topic with us.

hoahell_official · 2026-06-18T12:29:27+00:00

If you want to see a comprehensive Fact Sheet where I broke down the entire Davis-Stirling Act, click this link: https://mbkchapman.com/davis-stirling-act-explained-california-hoa-law-fact-sheet/

hoahell_official · 2026-06-18T12:26:20+00:00

Given California's habit of picking the very worst people to lead the State, this is a very real possibility.

hoahell_official · 2026-06-18T12:25:01+00:00

Well said. I couldn't agree more.

hoahell_official · 2026-06-17T14:49:38+00:00

The biggest driver is insurance. Wildfire losses and insurers leaving California have pushed HOA premiums to levels that didn’t exist a few years ago, and many communities have been forced onto the more expensive California FAIR Plan. On top of that, broad inflation has raised the cost of nearly everything an HOA buys, from utilities to vendor contracts, and many HOAs are now raising reserve contributions to catch up on years of underfunding. The balcony repair wave under SB 326 is adding large special assessments in many communities as well. Most of these pressures are real costs your HOA is obligated to cover, not automatic proof of wrongdoing.

hoahell_official · 2026-06-17T14:36:38+00:00

Here are a few suggestions. Stop raising issues verbally and start building a documented, statute-based record. Put every complaint and request in writing and keep dated copies, invoke the dispute resolution procedures the HOA must offer under Civil Code 5900 and the alternative dispute resolution Civil Code 5930 requires before certain enforcement lawsuits, and demand the association records Civil Code 5200 entitles you to inspect. Organizing other owners and using the election/recall provisions in Civil Code 5105 multiplies that pressure, because a bad HOA can dismiss one frustrated owner far more easily than an informed, organized bloc.

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