Question: Can a strata manager place a breach notice on a vehicle parked on common property, or is this illegal?
Our strata manager places a note under the windscreen wiper of any vehicle parked on common property without permission. The note says the vehicle is breaching by-laws, warns the committee may take action, and provides two email addresses for more information.
Some owners of the offending vehicles claim it is illegal to touch their cars, even when they are parked on common property without permission. Is that correct?
Answer: If the committee wishes to enforce the by-laws, the body corporate should do that through the prescribed by-law enforcement mechanism.
There is an argument that the placing of notices on vehicles parked in contravention of the by-laws may amount to trespass. However, this would depend on several considerations, including whether there were notices indicating the parking rules, whether the car was parked by an owner, occupier, visitor, or third party, whether any damage was caused when the car was touched, and how the notice was placed. The safer option would be not to place notices but to correspond with the owners of the cars (if that is possible).
Trespass to goods requires a party to directly and, either intentionally or negligently, disturb another party’s possession of a good. For example, this may occur if the manager were to cause damage to a vehicle by placing the notice on it.
If the committee wishes to enforce the by-laws, the body corporate should do that through the prescribed by-law enforcement mechanism (or utilising the new towing legislation).
This post appears in Strata News #788.
Todd Garsden Mahoneys E: tgarsden@mahoneys.com.au P: 07 3007 3753
