Can the owners' association (the “comunidad de propietarios”) install surveillance cameras? Who can see the recordings?

Question

José Manuel Alburquerque · Accepted Answer

Yes, if the owners' general meeting agrees and the data protection rules are complied with. In Catalonia a simple majority of the owners voting is, in principle, enough. The recordings can only be viewed by the people designated by the owners' association, such as the president, the managing agent or the security company. A neighbour only has a right of access to the images in which he or she appears, not to see those of others. Unless they capture a crime or damage and have to be handed over to the police or the court, they are deleted within one month at most. The resolution of the owners' general meeting The owners' association is responsible for the cameras and the owners' general meeting has to approve their installation. The “Agencia Española de Protección de Datos”, Spain's data protection authority, recommends that the resolution state which system is being installed, how many cameras and which spaces each one records. It is also advisable for it to state who will be able to see the images. The “Código Civil de Cataluña”, the Catalan Civil Code, does not set a special majority for cameras, so in principle a simple majority of the owners voting is enough. If the installation requires works affecting the structure or the external appearance of the building, four-fifths of the owners and of the participation shares may be needed. In the rest of Spain, the three-fifths majority that the Horizontal Property Act (“Ley de Propiedad Horizontal”) requires for security services is usually applied. What must be complied with Putting up visible signs at the entrances to the monitored areas, stating that there are cameras, that the owners' association is responsible and how data protection rights can be exercised. They can refer to a website or a code. Recording only the common areas. Of the street, at most a minimal strip next to the entrance can be captured. Neighbouring homes and land cannot be recorded. Deleting the images within one month at most. If they capture a theft, an assault or damage, they are kept and made available to the police or the court within 72 hours of becoming aware of them. If a security company is hired, signing with it the contract that data protection rules require with anyone who processes data on behalf of another. Who can see the recordings They can only be viewed by the people designated by the owners' association, who are usually the president, the managing agent or the security company. Those people can only use them for the security of the building. The Agency's guide says that under no circumstances can they be made available to residents through a television channel in the building. Nor should they be sent to a messaging group or put up in the entrance hall. If there is a theft or damage, they are handed over to the police or the court. A neighbour cannot ask to be shown the recordings, but can exercise his or her right of access to the images in which he or she appears. As other people usually appear in them too, the Agency's guide accepts that the owners' association may reply with a written statement detailing what was recorded of that person. If the images capture damage you have suffered, such as a knock to your car in the garage, the useful thing is to report it straight away and ask in writing for them to be kept, because they are deleted within one month at most. If you believe these rules are not being complied with, you can complain to the “Agencia Española de Protección de Datos”, which also has jurisdiction in Catalonia.