NSW: Balcony hose flooding apartments: Strata or contents insurance?

This article discusses balcony hose water damage by explaining that flooding caused by a hose left on a balcony is generally claimed under strata insurance for the building, with contents claimed separately by owners.

Question: An owner left a hose connected to a balcony tap, with the tap turned on. The hose came off the tap and flooded the owner’s and two other apartments. Would this be a claim on insurance through the Strata or does the owner have to claim on their contents insurance?

Answer: As the strata insurance policy is the only policy that the building can be covered, it is therefore appropriate that a claim is made under the strata policy.

The Strata Management Act requires the owners corporation to insure “building” for total rebuild value.

Owners are unable to insure their building as separate policies and this is due to the basic principle that you can not insure part of a building. A strata policy covers “sudden & accidental” damage and there are no specific exclusions in strata policies referring to negligence by a lot owner (although some policies may have conditions related to intentional & deliberate damage damage).

As the strata insurance policy is the only policy that the building can be covered, it is therefore appropriate that a claim is made under the strata policy.

Damage to contents items such as carpet, furniture etc would need to be claimed on each lot owners contents or landlords insurance policy.

This post appears in the April 2021 edition of The NSW Strata Magazine.

Tyrone Shandiman
Strata Insurance Solutions
E: tshandiman@iaa.net.au
P: 1300 554 165

This information is of a general nature only and neither represents nor is intended to be personal advice on any particular matter. Shandit Pty Ltd T/as Strata Insurance Solutions strongly suggests that no person should act specifically on the basis of the information in this document, but should obtain appropriate professional advice based on their own personal circumstances. Shandit Pty Ltd T/As Strata Insurance Solutions is a Corporate Authorised Representative (No. 404246) of Insurance Advisenent Australia AFSL No 240549, ABN 15 003 886 687.