Evacuation Due to Strata Building Defects

An Owners Corporation should take reasonable measures to address safety concerns that pose a significant risk to the safety of occupants.

A demonstrated failure to address known safety issues can increase negligence of the body corporate should that safety issue materialise to an injury claim.

When the building is insured, some policies have conditions requiring people to take reasonable care to comply with safety requirements, Australian standards or regulation of any government or local government body.

Once a building becomes uninsured, an insurer has no jurisdiction over what happens in a building and it therefore falls to the committee & owners to determine appropriate measures which can include evacuation in the most extreme cases.

An owners corporation should take actions to properly address hazards that pose an undesirable risk to the safety of occupants. Depending on the severity of the hazard, consideration should be placed on:

• Discussing the issue with the committee and determining whether the issue is actually a safety hazard as not all concerns raised by owners/tenants are safety issues;
• Complying with any government or council orders;
• Engaging an appropriate safety consultant to assess the risk and provide recommendations on addressing safety issue/s;
• Risk minimisation – such as cordoning off hazardous areas until the safety issue is addressed.

If an insurer has declined to offer cover due to safety issues the owners corporation should seek advice from the insurer or their insurance broker on what actions they need to take to become insurable again.

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 and the specific coverage afforded under their policy wording. Shandit Pty Ltd T/As Strata Insurance Solutions is a Corporate Authorised Representative (No. 404246) of Insurance Advisernet Australia AFSL No 240549, ABN 15 003 886 687.