In Qld the body corporate has a strict statutory obligation to repair and maintain common property.
From Flametrees’s description of the shared HWS on the common property, the HWS and the pipes appear to be common property.
There is a correct process to go through to get this matter resolved.
It is best to do things correctly from the ‘get go’ as if this matter eventually ends up at QCAT you don’t want it to fail due to a procedure that was not correctly followed.
The Lot owner has an obligation to notify the body corp in writing of any common property and common services that need repairing. It appears that the lot owner has done this. Was the lot owner’s request rejected at a formal committee meeting via a resolution, or in an informal situation?
It is unclear whether the plumber has written a report on the issue or has merely given a verbal assurance that the problem can be fixed.
If nothing has been written then get it all down in writing, including the plumber’s report and quote, and submit it to the body corporate committee ASAP. This is a matter that needs to be approved at a committee meeting or a general meeting.
The committee and the body corporate have a statutory duty to act reasonably in all of the decisions that they make, or do not make.
If a committee meeting has not been scheduled for a few months then the lot owner may need to suggest that a vote outside of a committee meeting be utilised by the committee. Give them a reasonable time frame to have the problem sorted out.
A committee can only authorise a repair up to their allocated spending limit. This spending limit depends upon the number of lots in the scheme.
If the repair costs are over this amount then the spending will need to be authorised by the body corporate at a general meeting. This may take a little time to organise – it is a process that takes a legally mandated amount of time.
The body corporate should probably employ their own expert advice from an independent plumber to verify the advice from the lot owner’s plumber and to verify the quote. It would be reasonable for them to do this.
Depending on the cost of the quote, there may be a cheaper option for the body corp – to pay to have thermostatic mixing valves placed on the individual bathroom taps including showers and baths. This is similar to what is used in retirement villages and schools etc. It is my understanding that is not necessary on kitchen or laundry taps.
If the committee and/or the body corp don’t sort it out within a reasonable amount of time I would advise taking this matter to QCAT.