Privacy Act and HOAs

Started by LoriE • 6 replies • 1617 views

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LoriE (Indiana)
Posts: 34

Posted:

Our HOA has a web site and publishes the minutes of board meetings. We do not have a "Members Only" section. In those minutes, information delinquent dues giving the lot owner, name and phone numbers (home/business/cell) are included.

Ethically, I believe that information should be treated discretely (within the Board) and should not have been made public on the web site.

Thoughts?

MikeS1
Posts: 668

Posted:

That's totally not advisable to publish this information on the website. Any attorney will tell you this is a gray area, but it's not a good practice. If the board wants to discuss this in executive session that's fine, but right now, they are crusin-4a-brusin. There are tons of old postings on this issue.

GeraldT4
Posts: 1,022

Posted:

LoriE - What your HOA Board has done is create minutes with sensitive and very specific information, which should really be kept private, at least until another owner requests to see the information subject to any legal limitations. Then the HOA Board has compounded this practice by posting the minutes on-line. LOL. At the very least the HOA website should be password protected. You get the ethics, and conundrum, unfortunate others do not. Other than make a recommendation the HOA Board password protect the website and remove any sensitive materials, what more can you or should you do? Can't stop a moving train, especially one that's riding the rails of stupidity towards a D & O lawsuit.

RaymondC (Minnesota)
Posts: 64

Posted:

Apart from both insensitive and foolish, this is a decision that will likely keep you people feeding lawyers for a long time to come. Wake up!

LoriE (Indiana)
Posts: 34

Posted:

I've tried to wake these people up. They refuse to listen because they "don't want to stir the pot".

JanP1 (Arizona)
Posts: 76

Posted:

When it comes to money and a law suit - it will wake them up. First of all put it in writing to the whole board (protect yourself) contact the association's insurance agent who carries your association's directors and officers policy, as they are the ones who will have to pay for the defense when the law suit comes (and it will...). Let the insurance agent tell them how much these types of cases settle for.

Also talk with your own personal insurance agent and ask them to add a "loss assessment insurance" policy to your own personal policy. It cost me about $12 a year for mine - but it protects me if the board/association gets sued and ends up costing the association big bucks... Step away from the key board, pick up the phone now and call your personal insurance agent, get that additional coverage. (Just forego the pizza order this week.) Then after you've talked to your personal agent, give the association's agent a call and ask them if they could provide a workshop for your board.

PaulM (Pennsylvania)
Posts: 1,347

Posted:

LoriE: Not sure what 'pot' the Board doesn't want to stir....
However, the pot of 'prime for a law suit' is the one they actually are stirring by posting personal information. At the very least, they are publicizing personal phone numbers which is a strong no-no unless residents have given permission. Not to mention personal credit info...

Good post from Jan to encourage you to get personal insurance coverage which will protect you from any law suit against the Board/Assn. That's the first thing we did when we moved!!!

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