This article discusses fire door painting responsibility, explaining whether a lot owner can repaint the inside of a fire door and the risks and approvals involved when the door is body corporate property.
Question: If the body corporate paints the inside and outside of the fire door, can an owner repaint the inside of the door with a colour of their choice?
Our strata scheme is a building format plan under the accommodation module.
For fire doors located in a boundary wall between a lot and common property, is painting the inside of the fire door and the fire door frame an owner’s responsibility?
If the body corporate paints the inside and outside of the fire door, can an owner repaint the inside of the door with a colour of their choice?
Answer: Fire doors don’t come cheap, so tread carefully.
The fire door, including the frame, would usually be considered body corporate property in its entirety. The rationale is that the body corporate needs to guarantee the door’s integrity to ensure it does its job, which is to prevent the spread of fire.
The body corporate may not mind if you paint the door inside your lot, but you should check this with the body corporate and the fire contractor. I expect that the response of the fire contractor will be critical. The body corporate may be indifferent to the internal colour of the door, but if you damage it, perhaps by using the wrong type of paint or covering the door’s information tag, you could find yourself responsible for the replacement of the door. Fire doors don’t come cheap, so tread carefully.
This post appears in the June 2025 edition of The QLD Strata Magazine.
William Marquand
Tower Body Corporate
E: willmarquand@towerbodycorporate.com.au
P: 07 5609 4924
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