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If I’m watching my kids from the window, is that okay? Or do I have to be with them at the place of play?
This is exactly what I was referring to in my previous post. Some would argue that if you can see them, they are being supervised. Others might say that the potential for distractions in the home – phone calls, boiling kettles, text messages – mean they are merely being temporarily observed. This is the kind of thing that the NCAT tribunal appeals board might decide – but then they decided that pet bans were OK, only to be overturned by the Supreme Court, Court of Appeal. And it would be cheaper to move somewhere with a safe play area than fight that beyond one NCAT hearing.
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if we assume the car spaces are common property, can lot owners store whatever items they want in their car spaces (alongside their cars) or is doing so a breach of the terms of standard strata insurance policy? Or council fire regulations? Or OH&S requirements?
There are a lot of assumptions here. The first is that the car space is common property. That is not always the case. However, common property by-laws can apply, such as having something in your lot that is not in keeping with the appearance of the scheme.
Issues like insurance, fire regulations and OH&S only really apply if there is a clear danger or if the certification or insurance policies say you can’t store certain things in the car space.
Our building has a strict rule on storage boxes in car spaces – even down to their colour. If residents ignore it then it’s up to the strata committee to decide whether or not the breach is serious enough to warrant a verbal warning or Notice To Comply.
This is how strata schemes set their own standards about how they want to live. If the majority of other owners’ standards are wildly different from ours, we may be living in the wrong place.
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If you don’t accompany your children, you will be in breach of the by law.
Defining “accompany” would be a field day for lawyers.
As an aside, modern strata buildings don’t cater for children’s play activities. In my area I see an increasing number of families using the local park for their kids’ activities.
That’s what they’re there for. But some family friendly blocks do have a play area, often shared by a number of buildings. They should be a condition of planning approval (but they’re not).
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Hmmm. Speedbump or by-law? Wonder which one most owners would go for…
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Who would be responsible in this case?
Ah, that would be the bottle shop that supplied them with the alcohol, wouldn’t it?
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But it’s not in NSW legislation, is it?
There is legislation and then there is accepted or normalised behaviour. If the insurance companies treat fixtures and fittings as if they were common property but strata schemes treat them as lot property, then that will be accepted until someone takes a case to the Court of Appeal and gets a definitive ruling.
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There is a prescribed height. I understand that this is a rule that has to be observed even without an order. Or is it not?
So what happens if there is no order? There are no StrataKops.
However, if someone tips over it and suffers serious injury or worse in a fall, and there is a record of your strata scheme having been told the balustrade was under height, you could be in trouble from the victim of the fall and insurance might walk away.
Or, if the council tells you it’s too low and orders you to fix it, then you could be fined for not doing so.
Those scenarios aside, no one is going to come around and measure your balustrades and fine you if they aren’t high enough.
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I’m not sure what the additional cost of “test and tag”ging for privately owned equipment in common areas would amount to.
The cost of test and tag would be prohibitive and the intrusion into our lives for inspections would be unacceptable, to the point that most people would refuse to comply, even if they knew their equipment was up to scratch.
Insurance companies employ very smart people to look at real-life statistics and evaluate risk. They tend to err on the side of safety when it comes to calculating premiums. If and when your insurance policies – strata or home and contents – include “extras” for charging electric cars, bikes and scooters – either in the comunal garage or in the home – you’ll know it’s time to be genuinely concerned.
Right now I would imagine we are at greater potential risk from balcony barbecues and discarded lit cigarettes than the relatively few electric batteries in cars and on bikes, but it’s still not enough to get the alarm bells ringing.
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I think a strongly worded letter from your strata manager or lawyer telling the developer their contractors need to respect their neighbours and, by the way, you will be raising the issues of overshadowing at a strata meeting to see what action your scheme can take to mitigate the effects of their construction and determine if it was legally approved.
Something like that to fire a shot across their bows. Remember what happened at Mascot Towers – it’s very likely that work on the adjoining lot cause the building to collapse.
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Hmmm. Less than 100 per cent sure this is serious. Maybe he’s on the same tea and toilet schedule as you. You could just boil the kettle, then stop halfway through and see what happens. Start the shower then stop it when you hear the toilet flush, give it 5 minutes then start again.
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If a child is hit by a car, wouldn’t the vehicle’s CTP insurance cover it?
I don’t think this is about insurance, despite the arguments the committee is making to get support for the by-law. It’s about kids playing in an area designed for vehicular traffic and, possibly, some noise nuisance that isn’t being mentioned, perhaps to avoid identifying affected residents.
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If a child is hit by a car, wouldn’t the vehicle’s CTP insurance cover it?
I don’t think this is about insurance, despite the arguments the committee is making to get support for the by-law. It’s about kids playing in an area designed for vehicular traffic and, possibly, some noise nuisance that isn’t being mentioned, perhaps to avoid identifying affected residents.
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And why would someone not vote to return money to them, though I guess you could find some crazy souls out there.
All I can say is, I’ve seen it done, for reasons from not wanting to go along with the committeee or chair to simple envy because the person with the lowest unit entitlements was going to get less that the owner with the highest. It only takes one “no” vote. And in my experience, some people from all walks of life, who only have the power to say no, use it at every opportunity.
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Surely a driveway would be covered by “other area of possible danger or hazard to children” ??
Yes, but the current by-law allows children to play in those areas under adult supervision.
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Can an OC be liable for medical costs etc? Or would the building insurance cover it?
Depends on the insurance, but if the block permitted activities that the insurance didn’t cover, then yes, the scheme would be liable.
Could this be viewed as discriminatory or fraud against the minority?
Not really (and certainly not fraud on the minority, which is related to the sale of common property). The owners corp is entitled to control the use of common property and ensure that it is used safely for the purpose for which it was intended. So many kids are killed or injured on the driveways of private homes every year that you’re unlikely to get a sympathetic hearing at a tribunal.
It may be that noise is bugging your neighbours more than the fear of financial responsibility, but that’s the kind of argument that gets owners’ attention when it comes to a vote. You need to find an area where the kids can play safely and be left to be kids.
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