Owners' Pro Rata Liability Towards Creditors

When a supplier holds a claim against the condominium, it cannot demand the entire amount from a single owner who is in good standing with payments. Several (pro rata) liability applies: each owner is liable within the limits of his share of thousandths (millesimi). Moreover, Article 63, second paragraph, of the provisions implementing the Italian Civil Code establishes that creditors may act against owners in good standing only after having pursued the other owners, that is the defaulters. It is a double filter protecting those who pay.

Several liability, not joint liability

In external relations with the condominium's creditors, the owners' obligation is several and not joint. This means the overall debt is broken down into as many fractions as there are units, each proportionate to the thousandths. The individual owner is liable for his share, not for the whole debt. This principle, affirmed by the Court of Cassation and consistent with the text of Article 63, prevents those who pay on time from being called upon to cover the default of others.

The difference from joint liability is substantial. In a joint obligation the creditor can demand the whole from any of the co-debtors, subject to internal recourse. With several liability, instead, each owner is bound only for his own part from the external relationship onwards.

The benefit of prior enforcement against defaulters

The second paragraph of Article 63 adds a further protection. A creditor wishing to act against owners in good standing must first pursue the defaulters. In practice the supplier must attempt collection against those who have not paid and only afterwards, if it cannot be satisfied, may it turn to the diligent owners, always within the limits of their share.

To make this mechanism operational the manager has a key role: he must communicate to the creditor the details of the defaulting owners. This is the tool that allows the supplier to identify whom to approach first. An up-to-date register and accounting that precisely identifies defaulters therefore become essential.

What the manager must do

A manager who receives a payment request from a creditor must provide the list of defaulting owners with their respective shares. If he does not, or provides incomplete data, the condominium and the manager himself may be exposed. Keeping individual positions correctly is not a formality: it is the condition for several liability and the benefit of prior enforcement to work.

• Keep an up-to-date condominium register with owners and thousandths shares
• Promptly record payments and arrears of each unit
• Communicate the details of defaulting owners to the creditor when requested
• Document the amounts owed and those already paid by each
• Take timely action to recover from the defaulters

Consequences for the owner in good standing

The owner who has paid regularly is protected but not entirely immune. If, once attempts against the defaulters are exhausted, the claim remains unpaid, the supplier can turn to him for his share. In that case the owner who pays beyond his own part has the right to recover from the defaulters. Several liability limits exposure to the thousandths fraction, but it does not eliminate every risk if default is widespread and the debtors are insolvent.

This is where the importance of preventive arrears management emerges. The sooner the condominium acts against those who do not pay, the lower the risk that the supplier's claim falls, on a residual basis, on the owners in good standing.

Internal relations and allocation of the unpaid amount

Distinct from liability towards external creditors is the question of the internal allocation of the unpaid amount. If the condominium must in any case pay the supplier, the expense relating to the defaulter's share is advanced by the community and then recovered from the debtor. The claim against the defaulter remains and must be enforced, so as to bring the accounts back into balance.

Accounting precision as a defence

The operation of several liability and the benefit of prior enforcement depends on data quality. A clear individual account for each owner, with principal, interest and shares, allows the manager to respond immediately to creditors' requests and to direct them towards the defaulters, protecting those who pay.

AmministraPro keeps the condominium register updated, distinguishes owners in good standing from defaulters and produces the list of positions to communicate to creditors. The features are described on the /funzioni page, while the available plans can be reviewed on /prezzi.