Rainwater has penetrated the tiles on a top balcony and entered the unit below. Who is liable for the repairs caused by this situation?
Our 12 unit building in Double Bay NSW was built in 1934.
The rainwater has penetrated the floor tiles of one of the top floor balconies. There is no cover over this balcony and it is open to the weather.
The rainwater has also penetrated through to the ceiling of unit below.
Who is liable for repairs? Is this an owners corporation responsibility or the lot owners of above unit?
It depends on the boundaries of the lot. This is generally established by the strata plan.
From a maintenance perspective, it depends on the boundaries of the lot. This is established by the strata plan generally. Most strata companies responsibility ceases prior to the waterproofing, therefore it is the lot owners responsibility to maintain and repair the waterproofing/ tiles and grout.
For an insurance claim, if the cause of the water ingress was the failing waterproofing then the owners are responsible to repair the waterproofing, tiling and grout and the policy would pick up the resultant damage. That is of course if it is not an ongoing issue/defect the owners were aware of and did nothing to correct.
In terms of the next steps in addressing the issue it would recommended that a forensic investigation be undertaken to identify the full extent of the underlying cause/s and then a scope of work provided outlining the detail relating to the required remedial repairs needed to resolve the issue, the Owners Corporation can then move to getting like for like quotes for works needed. Sedgwick naturally can assist with providing these services as required.
Log in to your existing Lookupstrata Account to download the printable file.
Bruce McKenzie is National Manager for Commercial Services and Major Projects at Sedgwick's Building Consulting Division, the largest claims management corporation in the world. With over 36 years' experience as a licenced building contractor, Bruce has received multiple state building excellence awards and a National Building Award through Master Builders Australia.
Since joining Sedgwick a decade ago, Bruce has led the growth of its Commercial Services Division, managing major building projects nationally across the insurance and private sectors — including property damage, catastrophe events and large-scale remediation. He has acted as expert witness on high-profile litigation matters, most notably the Lacrosse Tower combustible cladding case, and served as Program Director for Cladding Safety Victoria, overseeing the recladding of over 40 buildings as part of the Victorian Government's $600 million rectification program. In 2022 he commenced a secondment as Program Director for Project Intervene with the NSW Office of the Building Commissioner, addressing serious defects in recently constructed buildings.
Bruce is a licensed builder in NSW, QLD, VIC and ACT, and holds an Advanced Diploma in Building & Construction Management and a Diploma of Project Management.
Lookupstrata Directory
Looking for NSW Strata Specialist in your area? Search within our LookUpStrata Directory for the best list of contacts available
Search the directory
Comments
Log in to leave a comment