Blue Swimmer – I don’t see the cost analysis as a scam, but rather symptomatic of the fact that the fire extinguishers are transported, evacuated, pressure tested, re-filled, and returned by people here in Oz who work under Aust. rates of pay and conditions, and the new extinguishers are sourced from overseas locations where the former is much lower and the latter almost non-existent. I know of one Plan that buys new fire extinguishers each year from a large hardware store as that’s cheaper than regular testing/certification and five yearly replacements by a specialist contractor.
I agree with you about the (undesirable) consequences of uninvolved and apathetic Owners and poorly trained and often overworked Strata Managers; they’re the main reasons for our Plan self-managing. Sadly the apathy prevails, but just not at the Executive Committee level.