My view is that complaints to OC’s should not be acted on unless they are reduced to writing. The written complaint should be a contemporaneous account, as much as possible of actually what happened, what has given rise to the complaint with objective full details, including any evidence such as photos, police report, building report, other owners/occupants experience etc to allow the OC, through the EC, to take appropriate action. “It has come to the attention” is a cop out and meaningless and has no real factual basis.
Similarly any complaint the OC resolves to make directly to an owner/occupant should be in writing with the same components as above and must give the person about whom the OC is complaining the opportunity to respond. Such a process can apply when an owner/occupant has a genuine fear of harassment about whom s/he is making the complaint. The initial correspondence from the owner/occupier in these instances should be kept confidential.
If is also a good idea to formally let all owners and occupants know of the OC’s policy i.e. that no complaints will be acted on unless received in writing. Furthermore if complaints are lodged in writing with the OC the complainant will receive a response. There can be some exceptions such as emergencies or when immediate action is needed so the above is a general rule. Such notice should also inform complainants that if they have concerns about making a complaint against someone the OC will act on their behalf, provided they let the OC know in writing of the actual complaint.
To facilitate lodgement of complaints a pro forma “Building Incident” report form which can be emailed, posted etc. would assist. Such a form could be used for a whole range of building related issues e.g. security breaches, building faults, non compliance with by-laws; safety concerns, general queries, suggestions etc. Many people are not good at writing letters so such a form should be easy to understand and complete, concise, flexible, available as an online tool and be able to be integrated into your building log.
In addition to the above a correspondence register should be maintained by the OC where all items to and from the OC are recorded – this should include emails, letters, faxes, legal notices etc. The correspondence register should be tabled and be open for discussion at each meeting of the EC i.e. a standing item on all agendas for EC meetings.
With the above procedures everything is above board, all correspondence is open for discussion, all correspondence is recorded and acted on and you have a permanent record.