Dear Atty. Kathy,

When I visit my parents in their village, the security guard at the village gate always asks me to surrender my driver’s license. I try to offer my other valid government-issued identification cards, but the security guard will not let me in unless I surrender my driver’s license. I told the security guard I cannot be driving around the village without my driver’s license, but the security guard only says he is following the rules of the homeowners’ association of the village. Is the homeowners’ association allowed to implement this kind of rule?

Yara

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Dear Yara,

Section 12 of HLURB Executive Committee Resolution No. 1, Series of 2017, dated 8 March 2017, entitled “Guidelines in the Kinds of Dues, Fees and Contributions That May Be Collected by Homeowners Associations” provides that it shall be prohibited to require the driver of any vehicle entering the subdivision or condominium to surrender his/her driver’s license; and that the association is not authorized under the traffic laws to take custody, even on a temporary basis, the license issued by the Land Transportation Office (LTO). Thus, all homeowners associations, their boards of directors, officers, village administrators, security personnel and all other staff implementing ingress/egress regulations are enjoined to immediately cease and desist from requiring the driver of any vehicle entering their subdivision, village or any gated or secured community to surrender their driver’s license.

The above prohibition is also mentioned in the Advisory of the Philippine National Police, Civil Security Group Supervisory Office for Security and Investigation Agencies, entitled “Advisory on the Confiscation of Driver’s License by Security Guards,” dated 15 June 2020, which provides that the power to secure and/or confiscate driver’s licenses are lodged under the capacity of the LTO personnel and others who are duly deputized by the said Agency; that the home owners associations and the security guards of subdivisions, villages and condominiums are not authorized under traffic laws to take custody, even on a temporary basis, the license issued by the LTO; and the drivers of vehicles entering these properties may present any valid government-issued identification cards to said security guards.

Based on the above, the homeowners association of the village where your parents live is not allowed to implement such rule requiring you to surrender your driver’s license when entering the village. Instead, as you have offered, you may present your other valid government-issued identification cards to the security guard to be allowed to enter the village.

(Department of Human Settlements and Urban Development (DHSUD) Department Circular No. 2020-002, Dated 25 June 2020)

Atty. Kathy Larios