A leaking roof: how to act NOW without breaking the rules

It is raining inside flat 4B. No meeting has been called. What do you do?

Act first

The law backs the chair (and the manager) in ordering urgent and necessary repairs without a prior resolution: stopping the damage is an obligation, not an option. Call the roofing firm and authorise the emergency repair.

Document at the same time

• Photos and video of the damage, with date and time.
• Notify the community's insurer immediately (it may cover the damage and even the repair, depending on the policy).
• A notice to all neighbours: what happened, what has been ordered, estimated cost.

Pay with what you have

The reserve fund exists for exactly this. If it is not enough, an advance from the treasury and regularisation in the next budget or levy.

Report at the next meeting

Urgent expenditure is ratified at the first meeting held, with the invoices and a report of what was done. With the process documented, ratification is a formality.

The afterthought

Every emergency is a warning: if the roof gave you the fright, a general inspection is due before the next winter. Urgent work costs three times what planned work does.