Liability of the community president under Spanish law

In Spain it is the community of owners that answers to third parties, not its president, who only represents it (LPH article 13.3). The president pays personally only when acting without or beyond the meeting's authority (Civil Code article 1727) or when the harm comes from their own negligence. The post is compulsory and lasts one year.

Marta was voted president at the May meeting and, four months later, found a court envelope in her mailbox with her full name on it. A neighbour had tripped on a loose tile in the lobby that she, the letter claimed, "knew about and never fixed". She spent two weeks sure she would pay with her home and her salary. If your turn comes round while you spend half the year abroad, the fear is understandable. The law is less frightening.

Does the president answer with their own money?

As a rule, no. When an outsider is hurt by something communal (a loose tile, a falling cornice, a leak into the shop below), the party sued is the community. It has no legal personality, but Spanish procedure lets it be a party to a lawsuit (Civil Procedure Act, article 6.1.5), and it almost always has civil-liability insurance. The president signs, appears and takes the heat on behalf of the community, just as a company director acts for the firm and not out of their own account. The financial consequences of what the president does within the role fall on the common fund and, where needed, on a special levy approved by the meeting.

When is the president personally liable?

• Acting alone, without a resolution or beyond the authority granted: commissioning works nobody approved, settling a lawsuit without a mandate. Whatever exceeds the mandate does not bind the community unless it ratifies it (article 1727).
• Their own negligence: they knew of a risk, could have dealt with it and did nothing. Anyone who causes harm through fault or negligence must repair it (article 1902). Marta's tile would only touch her if it were shown she knew, could fix it and chose not to.
• Mishandling common funds: mixing the community's money with their own, paying without receipts, never rendering accounts.

The president who gets into trouble is usually the one who decided to "sort it out fast" without the meeting: hiring the first builder available, fronting money from their own account or settling with a neighbour to make a problem go away.

How does the president stay protected?

With paper: a trail showing that every decision came from the meeting and was carried out as agreed. Never move without a resolution, keep the actas and accounts clean, notify by verifiable means such as a burofax when it matters, and keep every notice, quote, invoice and email. Community software such as Vecinly helps here, keeping minutes, receipts and accounts in one place with dates, which also matters when the president spends months of the year in another country.

A compulsory, unpaid post

Article 13.2 of the LPH has the president elected among the owners or, failing candidates, chosen by rotation or by lot; the one-year term comes from article 13.7, unless the statutes say otherwise. The law provides for no salary. The appointed owner can ask a judge to be relieved within one month of appointment, giving their reasons. If your community is weighing self-management, read first what duties the president takes on.

Before chasing a debtor: the 2025 step

Since 3 April 2025, Organic Law 1/2025 requires an attempt at out-of-court resolution before a civil claim. For the community, that means showing a prior settlement attempt before filing a payment claim against a neighbour who does not pay; skip it and the court may reject the claim. We cover the full procedure in how to claim unpaid community fees.

Marta's scare deflated the moment her lawyer read the minutes: the community was insured and she had done things right. If you have just taken on the role, our page for board presidents shows how to keep minutes and accounts without piles of paper.

Information updated September 2026. This article is for information only and does not constitute legal advice.