Chapter 558 for Condo Associations and HOAs vs. Individual Owners
How Florida's Chapter 558 changes when a condo, HOA, co-op or mobile home park association brings the claim: the 20-parcel rule, longer clocks and unit access.
Updated 7 min readFlorida Statutes, Chapter 558
The short version
- Associations can bring 558 claims. So can individual owners and later buyers (§ 558.002(3)).
- Claims involving an association representing more than 20 parcels run on longer clocks, like 120 days' notice before filing instead of 60.
- Associations with 20 or fewer parcels use the standard clocks.
- The 45 days to accept or reject a settlement offer doesn't get longer for associations.
On this page
The roof leak at Bayview Towers is on the board agenda again, and Linda, the treasurer, has heard enough about waiting.
“My brother-in-law sent his builder a 558 notice and had a written answer within 45 days,” she tells the property manager. “Why does everything take longer for us?”
The manager's answer is short. Bayview's association represents 84 units, and Chapter 558 runs on longer clocks when a claim involves an association representing more than 20 parcels.
Fair question. Here's what changes when an association brings the claim, and what doesn't.
Who counts as an association under Chapter 558?
Chapter 558 doesn't write its own definition. It points to four other Florida statutes instead (§ 558.002(2)), which cover:
- Condominium associations (§ 718.103)
- Cooperative associations (§ 719.103(2))
- Homeowners' associations (§ 720.301(9))
- Mobile home park homeowners' associations (§ 723.075)
If yours is one of them, it counts for 558 purposes.
Can an HOA or condo association bring a 558 claim?
Yes. The statute defines a claimant as a property owner and spells out that this includes associations and later buyers:
a property owner, including a subsequent purchaser or association, who asserts a claim for damages against a contractor, subcontractor, supplier, or design professional concerning a construction defect
So the association can be a claimant. So can an individual unit owner, or someone who bought from the original owner.
Who should bring the claim, the association or the owner?
Chapter 558 doesn't answer that. In practice, it usually starts with who owns, or is responsible for, the defective component. Every community's governing documents handle that a little differently.
Don't settle it by a show of hands. Have counsel read the documents and tell you who the claimant should be before anyone signs a notice.
Example
Two claims under one roof
At Bayview, counsel reads the documents and confirms the roof is the association's responsibility, so the association serves its notice on the roofer the board hired. Tom in 7C is a different story: his shower pan cracked after a remodel he paid for himself. That claim is his, and because it comes from work under a contract, his notice goes to the contractor he signed with (§ 558.004(1)(a)).
What changes when an association has more than 20 parcels?
Most of the main clocks in § 558.004 come in two versions. The longer one applies when the claim involves “an association representing more than 20 parcels.”
| What happens | Standard clock | Association, more than 20 parcels |
|---|---|---|
| You serve the notice before filing an action (§ 558.004(1)(a)) | At least 60 days before | At least 120 days before |
| The party you served may inspect (§ 558.004(2)) | Within 30 days of service | Within 50 days of service |
| They may forward copies to others they reasonably believe are responsible (§ 558.004(3)) | Within 10 days of service | Within 30 days of service |
| Those parties answer, in writing, whoever sent them the copy (§ 558.004(4)) | Within 15 days of being served a copy | Within 30 days of being served a copy |
| The party you served responds to you in writing (§ 558.004(5)) | Within 45 days of service | Within 75 days (see note below) |
Note
One wording quirk
For the 75-day response, § 558.004(5) refers to service of “a copy of the notice of claim” and doesn't explain why. The free deadline calculator counts it from your service date, as it does the inspection and forwarding clocks. If a real decision turns on it, ask counsel.
Which deadlines stay the same?
A few deadlines don't change with size, including these two:
- 45 days to accept or reject a settlement offer, in writing, after you receive it (§ 558.004(7)).
- 30 days to exchange documents after a proper written request (§ 558.004(15)).
The 45-day window is what trips up boards. Say you meet monthly and an offer lands the day after a meeting. You get one regular meeting to decide.
And serving a 558 notice doesn't pause (toll) the statute of repose (§ 558.004(1)(d)). The longer clocks are no reason to wait, so ask your lawyer how repose applies to your building.
What if our association has 20 or fewer parcels?
Then you're on the standard clocks. The longer set needs more than 20 parcels, so exactly 20 still means standard clocks.
Take a 16-lot HOA. It expects a written response within 45 days of service and generally waits at least 60 days before filing.
Watch out
Close to 20? Check the count
Chapter 558 doesn't define “parcel.” If your number is near 20, or your community mixes units, lots and commercial space, get counsel's read before you rely on either set of clocks. Until then, plan for the longer waiting period before filing anything.
How do inspections work when a claim covers many units?
After service, the party you served can do a reasonable inspection of “the property or of each unit subject to the claim.” That's within 50 days for a larger association, 30 otherwise (§ 558.004(2)).
Can the association let inspectors in? Where it has a right to access property for maintenance or repair, that right “includes the authority to grant access for the inspection.”
Chapter 558 doesn't say how far that right reaches. Check your governing documents with counsel.
The claimant must give reasonable access during normal working hours, and the other side must reasonably coordinate with you “to minimize the number of inspections.” Anyone who gets a forwarded copy can inspect too (§ 558.004(3)), so you may see more than one crew.
Note
If they want to cut into walls
Destructive testing needs mutual agreement and a written notice describing the testing, who'll do it, the expected damage, how long it should take, and the financial responsibility offered for repairs or restoration. It can't make the property uninhabitable, and you or a representative can watch. Refuse reasonable testing, though, and you lose any claim for damages that the testing and a prompt, feasible fix could have avoided or mitigated (§ 558.004(2)).
How can a board keep a 558 claim organized?
Most of the friction in association claims is plain logistics: owners surprised by an inspector, a response mailed to a board president who moved away, a deadline that fell between meetings.
Before you serve
- Have association counsel confirm who the claimant is and who must be served.
- List every known defect you're claiming against that party, common areas and units alike. You can add new ones as they come to light, but only noticed defects (and ones reasonably related to or caused by them) can go to trial (§ 558.004(11)).
- Name a contact in the notice. Otherwise the response goes to whoever signed it (§ 558.004(5)).
- Gather plans, photos and maintenance records. The other side can request them (§ 558.004(15)).
After you serve
- Tell affected owners in writing when inspections may happen.
- Keep an access log: date, company, units entered, work done.
- Calendar the 45-day decision window the day any offer arrives.
- Brief the board in writing after each step, so turnover doesn't lose the thread.
Tip
When a leak can't wait
The 558 process doesn't stop you from making necessary emergency repairs to protect the claimant's health, safety and welfare (§ 558.004(9)). Photograph everything first and keep the invoices. Hold on to removed materials if you reasonably can.
If your manager or counsel's staff handles the paperwork, NoticeForge can turn your inspection report into a draft notice for the board to review and approve. It can also send the notice by USPS Certified Mail with electronic return receipt and track the larger-association deadlines.
Does the association need a lawyer for this?
Usually, at least for part of it. Who the claimant is and what counts as a parcel are legal judgment calls, and that's what association counsel is for.
Our guide on whether you need a lawyer for a 558 notice covers where a lawyer adds the most.
Where should your board start?
- Count your parcels. If you're anywhere near 20, ask counsel which clocks apply.
- Have counsel confirm who the claimant is for each defect: the association, an owner, or both.
- Build one complete list of defects with locations. Our guide to what a 558 notice must contain walks through it.
- Serve the notice, then map every date with the deadline calculator, using the association option if it applies. The deadlines guide explains each one.
- Tell owners what's coming, and start your access log on day one.
Linda's takeaway, for the minutes: bigger association, longer clocks, but the same 45 days to decide on any offer.
Common questions
If the claim is covered by Chapter 558, yes. A claimant, including an association, can't file an action subject to the chapter without complying first, and on timely motion the court must stay a case filed before the claimant complies (§ 558.003). Coverage depends on things like the contract date, whether the building was complete, and any written opt-out (§ 558.005), so confirm with counsel.
It's genuinely unclear. The statute ties the longer clocks to a claim “involving an association representing more than 20 parcels” and doesn't define “involving.” Plan as if the other side may have the longer time, and talk to a Florida attorney before filing anything.
Yes, if the association has a right to access property for maintenance or repair, since that right includes the authority to grant access for the inspection (§ 558.004(2)). Chapter 558 doesn't say how far that right reaches, so check your governing documents. Ask your manager for the inspection schedule.
Under the statute, yes. A claimant has 45 days after receiving a timely settlement offer to accept or reject it in writing, with no longer version for associations (§ 558.004(7)). Plan a special meeting if your bylaws allow one. If you need more time, ask early: the parties can agree in writing to change the process (§ 558.005(4)).
Yes. At any time, the claimant and the party served can agree in writing to preaction mediation or otherwise change the notice-of-claim process (§ 558.005(4)). Have counsel review the agreement before anyone signs.