› Flat Chat Strata Forum › Living in strata › Which strata bylaw for neighbour noise (and SC question) › Current Page
There are two issues here.
1. You are having problems with your upstairs neighbour and
2. You want the strata committee to fix it for you.
While there is a principle in NSW strata law that the Owners Corporation has a duty to enforce its by-laws (implicit in section 232.2) if you go down that road, you first have to have a fight with the SC and then expect them to come in on your side when you win and they lose.
The worrying thing in this is that an acoustic test can only reveal the potential transmission of sound and doesn’t take into account actual experienced behaviour which, as you are discovering, can be a huge part of the problem.
However, I would be asking the committee for a commitment to take action, should the sound insulation prove inadequate, to insist that it be remedied (carpet and underlay is the simplest solution).
Alternatively, if the acoustic insulation is within the parameters set in the by-law, to take action to moderate the behaviour of the residents.
Then you can get the acoustic test done, but only to establish where the fault truly lies. I’m not sure about the committee’s insistence on “loser pays”. The floor, slab and ceiling are common property and therefor their responsibility.