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How many strata owners does it take to change a lightbulb? None, according to a Flat Chat Forum regular who found a quirk in the strata laws that sent Fair Trading into a tizz last week.
Over to the Flat Chat lighting correspondent, Mr Strata: “The Fair Trading website and booklet have a 'Who's Responsible?' section stating that recessed lights within a lot are common property and the Owners Corporation's responsibility.
“This would seem to create a major cost liability for a large number of strata schemes. How would an OC be able to access all apartments to replace the light globes in these recessed lights, let alone what this exercise would cost?”
It's true. Right there on page 15 of Strata Living, it says on lighting: “If it is recessed in the ceiling, it is the owners corporation's responsibility.”
Seriously? I dropped an email to Fair Trading who explained that this all comes down to the concept of a strata lot being the air space enclosed by, but not including, the walls, ceiling and floor.
The technical answer depends on where the airspace ends. If the downlights have a glass base, the airspace ends at their under surface; if they have no glass base and are open to the bulb, then the lot runs up and around the bulb.
However, an owners corporation can decide at a meeting not to change bulbs, or, while tedious, they could pass a special by-law making all owners responsible for all ceiling lights within their unit.
Fair Trading will be revising their booklet and website to remove this specific reference but that doesn't change the law. In fact, this is yet another example of how the strata Act needs to be dragged into the 21st Century
But there is some good news. Fair Trading are putting together comprehensive but customisable guidelines to help strata plans establish exactly what is and isn't common property.
So any OCs worried they could be spending all their time and half their sinking fund replacing recessed downlights can adapt and adopt the new rules. More on this later.
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