Question: A poorly constructed box gutter channels rainwater into our apartment. We’ve been requesting help from the owners corporation for years, but they keep pushing us aside. What do we do?
We have a rooftop on our apartment that runs parallel with a poorly constructed box gutter. This box gutter has water runoff from other apartments
When it rains, water waste runs onto our deck and down the spiral staircase onto our front foyer. We have to broom the water out through our entrance door.
I have been asking Strata Management and the committee for help for years however they keep pushing the water issue aside. Where is the next step to resolve this matter?
Answer: Issue a formal letter of demand that the Owners Corporation take action to rectify the water issue.
This raises a number of issues including:
- The Owners Corporation’s duties to repair & maintain the common property and their ongoing refusal to do so
- Risk of personal injury and potential impact on the Owners Corporation’s insurance
- Nuisance and hazard
The Owners Corporation has a strict duty to repair & maintain the common property and is liable to compensate an affected owner for any reasonably foreseeable loss suffered due to breach of that statutory duty.
We recommend you issue a formal letter of demand that the Owners Corporation take action (it may be that they need to investigate the cause) to rectify the water pooling and failing which, you will commence action through NCAT (which requires attempted mediation first).
For the full question and our detailed response, visit the original publication at Look Up Strata.
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