Question: The sliding garage gate in our new building is a safety concern in my parking space. I’ve raised the issue with the Body Corporate but they are not concerned. Are they liable if any damage occurs to me or my vehicle?
My new apartment building has a sliding gate for entry and exit into the resident’s car park. The gate slides open beside one of my car parks alongside my vehicle. From that parking space, I’m unable to see when a vehicle is entering or exiting the garage and, therefore, we do not know when the gate is about to open. This presents a risk when exiting the vehicle. A thin mesh wall may present a solution.
I raised this problem with the Body Corporate and suggested it was a defect. The developer states that it is not a defect. The Body Corporate believes it is not their issue. I believe they should come up with a solution to ensure my parking space is safe.
Should the Body Corporate be responsible to rectify this? If not, would they be liable for any potential damage?
Answer: You need to establish whether the set-up is actively unsafe.
To move the conversation forward you need to establish whether the set-up is actively unsafe.
At the moment you have an opinion that other people don’t agree with. That’s fine, but without evidence, it is something of a stand-off. From the information provided we can’t really say if one opinion is more valid than the next.
The facts that could take the matter forward would be something like a safety report from a qualified professional. If they agreed with you that the current set-up was unsafe, there would be an imperative to resolve that. If not, you may have to live with the situation.
You could ask the body corporate to undertake that report – you might submit a request to the committee or the next general meeting for this. If they are unwilling – and they are not obliged to follow your request – you could pay someone to do the report yourself.
If a safety issue is found then it would fall on the body corporate to resolve it. If the body corporate thinks the matter is a defect, they could refer it to the builder or developer but that is a different issue – it’s a body corporate car park so they carry the risk and liability for it. You have to bear in mind that any fix may not be the solution that you want. You are asking for a mesh wall but it may be that others think a mirror or a sign is sufficient. You may need to compromise to get a resolution.
Be reasonable in your correspondence with the body corporate and hopefully you can get some allies to try and resolve the issue.
This post appears in Strata News #626.
William Marquand Tower Body Corporate E: willmarquand@towerbodycorporate.com.au P: 07 5609 4924