Austman – you are in Victoria. I also own a property in Victoria, and my experience has been that the law is very different there.
The NSW legislation provides that a lot owner can be awarded damages for loss as a result of the OC’s failure to maintain the common property. You do not have to prove negligence, because the OC’s obligation is a strict liability one.
The strict duty to maintain the common property is an essential element, negligence is irrelevant.
Refer Strata Schemes Management Act section 106(5), and the decision in Shum.