10 ADJUSTINGTODAY.COM COVID Questions Bodily injury includes disease, so, depending on the circumstances, landlords and resident associations can be held legally liable for any person — resident, guest or employee — contracting a viral or bacterial infection. As a practical matter, it is usually difficult for a claimant to establish the source of an infection. Nonetheless, in 2020, numerous states granted limited immunity to nonprofit organizations — including resident associations — from bodily injury claims arising from the COVID-19 coronavirus. However, the immunity did not extend to willful or reckless misconduct. Associations were still expected to implement and try to enforce public health directives regarding mask-wearing, social distancing and limitations on gatherings. Other Liability Issues As noted earlier, in recent years landlords have increasingly added lease provisions (where permitted) requiring tenants to have renters insurance as a condition of occupancy. Although a tenant’s personal liability coverage would not respond to claims against a landlord, it would cover a tenant’s liability for damage to the landlord’s property and would provide an additional source of defense and indemnity coverage for claims lodged against both the landlord and the tenant. Liability coverage for both legal defense and damages is a standard feature of homeowners policies and is also provided in virtually all renters and unit-owners policies. For its part, a landlord, condominium association or co-op will purchase a commercial general liability policy (CGL) to cover any legal liability it incurs for bodily injury or property damage to third parties, including residents. Community residents will typically not be classified as insureds under an association’s CGL policy, except perhaps for actions they take on behalf of the landlord or association. As for residents who use their vehicles on behalf of the community, landlords and residential associations are advised to add“non-owned, hired”auto liability coverage to their CGL policies. Without it, resident volunteers may be without coverage for an at-fault accident while driving on behalf of the community. Of growing importance to owners and managers of multi-unit housing is the coverage provided under a CGL policy for allegations of personal injury, including unlawful invasion of privacy and interference with the enjoyment of private property. Landlords and association boards have an obligation to take reasonable steps to protect residents from hazards arising from individual units. That sometimes requires some degree of intrusion into a resident’s personal life, even more so in the time of COVID-19, when one person’s actions could be life-threatening to another. Of growing importance to owners and managers of multi-unit housing is the coverage provided under a CGL policy for allegations of personal injury, including unlawful invasion of privacy and interference with the enjoyment of private property.”
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