@scotlandx said:
Austman – the issue is not whether the owner of something that causes damage has done anything wrong. The question is who owns the thing that caused the damage. The owner is liable for that damage.
But is that the law in Australia?
I’ve read published tribunal and court cases where, in the absence of negligence or malicious intent or a failure to exercise a reasonable duty of care, an owner of something that has caused damage has been deemed not to be liable for the damage it caused. Eg a clock radio in a rented home spontaneously caught fire which caused major damage – the court ruled the tenant not to be liable because there was no negligence.
And how about an OC owned pipe inside a wall that burst when it couldn’t have been predicted or prevented? Where the contents of a lot were subsequently damaged by water. I realise the OC must repair the pipe and the OC’s insurance might cover the damage caused. But is the OC actually liable for the damage caused to the lot contents? Or should the lot resident be claiming on their own contents insurance?
Does liability always fall to the owner? Maybe it does. It seems unclear to me.