A building contains the areas belonging to each property and essential, undividable shared areas belonging to all the neighbours. These include the stairs, resting areas, the lift (if one exists) and the lobby of the building. There is also the general piping - drainpipes, for example - and the windowpanes of shared areas. In order to cover the eventualities that may occur in these areas, insurance companies offer different products, each adapting to the different needs of the community.
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If you already have insurance
If you are looking for a home insurance policy or you already have one, you should first check if your community has one, and if so, what its characteristics are. There are community insurance policies with wide-ranging and complementary guarantees that cover areas that are not shared. In these cases, pipe and windowpane damage is usually covered, including that which occurs in the individual homes.
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If your community has an insurance of this type, you should be able to considerably reduce the cost of your home insurance by removing the components already insured by the community. There are many cases of tenants and proprietors insuring the same thing twice under home and community insurances, thus paying for the same thing twice.

Main coverage
You should always bear in mind that an insurance does not cover in practically all cases, the damage caused by the progressive deterioration of the building or by lack of maintenance. For example, if water enters through a leaky roof, the repair is not covered by the insurance. The companies argue that the maintenance of a roof or fa�ade is the responsibility of all the proprietors and for this reason they do not consider themselves responsible for its repair if they are in bad condition.

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However the damage caused in the affected homes -on the walls, furniture or ceilings- are covered by the community policy, although you should always read the small print of any policy. This is applicable to other damage, such as broken piping. The only cases in which drainpipes are not covered is for corrosion -continuous deterioration of the piping- or blockage. All the remaining types of damage and potential consequences are usually covered by the policy.

If the community has an insurance policy, it is important that all the proprietors have the corresponding telephone number in case of accident. If the damage occurs in your home, also advise your own home insurance company. A simple call could prevent later problems if it is discovered the damage stems from your home.