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[chrispin]

Hi There,

Seeking some advice on whether some recent damage in an apartment in Victoria is the responsibility of the body corporate or myself (or both) to resolve.

My downstairs neighbour reported a leak earlier in the week. Plumbing investigation and demolition of the wall and floor has uncovered a pinhole leak in an old copper pipe deep within the slab.

This pipe services the hot water of my lot alone.

Who is financially liable accountable for the resolution of this? Both the repair of the pipe, and then reinstating any damage in the apartment below?

A tricky one as whilst the pipe services my building alone, the damage itself is in common property within the slab.

I can PM images of this helps.

Thanks,

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[Austman]

chrispin wrote:

This pipe services the hot water of my lot alone.

This is important in VIC (and some other states).  In VIC, s.129 of the Owners Corporations Act 2006 applies:

129 Care of lots
A lot owner must—
(a) …  and
(b) maintain any service that serves that lot exclusively.

It doesn’t matter where an issue occurs (on lot or common property), once a service exclusively services a lot, maintenance of it becomes a lot owner responsibility.

So the repairs are your responsibility. However the OC’s compulsory strata building insurance should help.  As a member of the OC, you have a right to claim on that policy.  It can depend on the policy but exploration costs and consequential damage can be covered.   Sometimes more.  It’s likely however that you would be requested to pay any excess but that’s a decision for the OC.

 

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[chrispin]

Thanks so much this is very helpful.

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[Author]

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