This Q&A article is about who is responsible for air conditioner maintenance in WA strata.
Question: My apartment’s air conditioning unit is in a locked maintenance room with other apartment AC units. Our council of owners say that although the unit is located on common property, lot owners are responsible for maintenance. Who is responsible for air conditioner maintenance in WA strata?
Answer: Ask the council to explain their reasoning for why the air conditioner is the owner’s responsibility.
Air conditioner maintenance can be tricky to navigate, as every strata scheme is different. However, there are a few steps that you can take to better understand your obligations in your strata scheme. First, check the strata plan. The strata plan will help identify your lot/part lot boundaries. These areas are generally always repaired and maintained by the owner of the associated lot.
The strata plan will also tell you if there are any registered bylaws for your strata scheme. Bylaws can add additional obligations or restrictions on owners, so it is important to have read and understood them. In particular, for this question, bylaws may provide “exclusive use” of the air conditioners associated with each lot or a similar bylaw that places the responsibility for repairs and maintenance of air conditioning units with the owner. Often such a bylaw will have either “exclusive use” or “air conditioners” in the heading.
If the air conditioner is not within the owner’s lot space, and there are no registered bylaws, a utility infrastructure contract could be in place. This is an agreement between the strata scheme and the owner to have utility infrastructure installed on common property for the benefit of the associated lot. Any change of ownership would require the new owner to accept this responsibility in writing by completing a deed of novation.
If the air conditioner is in common property, and none of the above situations apply, then it is likely that the strata company will be responsible for repairs and maintenance. However, there may still be circumstances where this is not the case, and your best bet is to seek clarification and any reasoning from the council of the strata company.
Ask the council to explain their reasoning for why the air conditioner is the owner’s responsibility. They should be able to provide a sufficient explanation of one of the above reasons.
ESM Strata
E: info@esmstrata.com.au
P: 08 9362 1166
This post appears in Strata News #733.
Have a question about who is responsible for air conditioner maintenance in WA strata or something to add to the article? Leave a comment below.
Read Next:
- NAT: What proactive maintenance measures can prolong building life and reduce costs in strata?
- WA: All About the 10 Year Maintenance Plan – What do we need?
- WA: Q&A Benefits of a strata repair and maintenance committee
Visit our Maintenance and Common Property OR Strata Information WA page.
Looking for strata information concerning your state? For state-specific strata information, take a look here.
After a free PDF of this article? Log into your existing LookUpStrata Account to download the printable file. Not a member? Simple – join for free on our Registration page.
Our strata initially had in its by-laws that it is the responsibility of the owners to maintain their own units as it is for their exclusive use, Our strata managers deleted this when they rewrote our bylaws for consolidation. Did they have a right to do so? Just remember if you claim on strata so will the rest of the owners, where do you think you strata fees are going ….up!
Hi Chris
We have just received this reply back from Luke Downie, WA Strata Consultant:
In my opinion the first consolidation of by-laws after the commencement of the amended Strata Titles Act on 1 May 2020 allowed strata companies to tidy and reformat their by-laws without requiring a vote. This administrative consolidation permitted renumbering, reformatting, and the removal of by-laws that were automatically invalidated by the amended legislation.
However, this process did not authorise strata managers to delete or alter valid by-laws. A by-law requiring owners to maintain their own lots is not inconsistent with the Strata Titles Act 1985 (WA). It aligns with section 91, which already places maintenance obligations on lot owners. Because it is not invalid, discriminatory, or contrary to the Act, it cannot be removed during consolidation unless the strata company has passed a formal resolution to repeal it.
Accordingly, if no such resolution was passed, the by-law remains legally in force even if it was omitted from the consolidated document.
It’s also important for owners to understand that “maintaining your own lot” refers only to the boundaries of the lot as shown on the strata plan. External walls, roofs, balconies and other structural elements may be, and often are common property, and therefore the responsibility of the strata company unless a valid by-law shifts that responsibility. It is important to understand from the Strata Plan where the boundaries of the lot sit.
This explanation reflects my professional experience in the strata industry, but it is not legal advice. For a definitive position, a legal opinion should be obtained from a lawyer who specialises in strata titles law.
Luke Downie
WA Strata Consultant
E: strataperth@gmail.com
T: 0456 589 639
This information is not intended to be personal advice and you should not rely on it as a substitute for any form of advice.
Can ESM expand on this article because it is a hot mess of nothingness from a qualified professional
How about ESM clarifying the role and responsibility of the Strata Manager to provide the correct answer to the COO when information is requested by an owner .
In all probability it would be the owner who will contact the Strata Manager for a response – it is very poor service by a strata manager to then seek the answers from the Council of Owners to then respond on behalf of the COO to the owner – shouldn’t that strata manager be responding directly to the owner with their strata scheme knowledge – By-laws, The Act, etc.
ESM didn’t mention anything about an owner ability to make an individual insurance claim under the strata scheme policy
ESM needs to expand on the following
How does and owner read their lot boundary on the strata plan
Exclusive Use
Deed of novation
The role of Strata Managers to every owner