There has been yet more to-ing and fro-ing on this and, to be honest, it’s getting us nowhere so, reluctant as I am to censor anyone, I have shut it down. There has been enough speculation (of which I have also been guilty) and we a re going round in circles.
The facts are that strata managers are advised not to provide email addresses for “privacy” reasons. There is a body of opinion that privacy laws don’t apply in this case. This opinion may be invalid. However, we can’t find a single case where the “privacy” ruling has been challenged successfully or otherwise (that’s not to say it hasn’t happened, just that we can’t find an instance).
Right now an officer at the NSW Customer Services department is contacting Fair Trading and Justice (who look after NCAT) to get a definitive ruling. So, please, no more bush-lawyering … it’s getting us nowhere.
I am interested, however, in Flatchatters’ experiences in coming up against this rule. I’m also curious to know how you’d feel about having your email address available to your fellow residents and owners, in exchange for theirs being available to you.