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In our block of 36, some owners have lock-up garages (on separate title if that’s relevant).
There is no power supply to the garages except for an overhead light, but over many years some owners have quietly had a powerpoint or two run off the light’s power to wall powerpoints; which may be illegal or even dangerous I’m told.
Now a tricky new owner has obtained a quote for an electrician to put a legal, proper powerpoint in his garage at a cost of $19,000 and EXPECTS THE OWNERS CORPORATION TO PAY FOR IT TO BE INSTALLED. He claims, since the Owners Corporation is responsible for the walls and he only owns the air space, they should pay.
Seems to me he’s wrong. Am I right?
Also, it’s suggested owners with existing connections running of the lights may be forced to have them removed at their own cost. (All would pre-date current owners and some are 30 years old have been incident free.) This too seems unfair. Right?
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I can’t quote chapter and verse, but the first point seems analogous to the installation of an additional circuit within the apartment, perhaps to service an array of electrical equipment that might not have been envisaged over 30 years ago. That would surely be the owner’s responsibility.
Power outlets linked to the low-amperage lighting circuits seem like a disaster waiting to happen. 30 years’ trouble-free use seems like good luck (trickle chargers or low-powered hand-held vacuum cleaners perhaps), but the next owner might want to plug in a high-powered drill or something similar. Unfair? Yes, but the unfairness in this case seems to be attributable to the ‘cowboys’ responsible for the situation in the past, not the present strata administration probably acting on sound advice.
The owner concerned needs a short sharp lesson in what common property is and isn’t. It’s certainly not a bottomless pit of money there to satisfy the whims of every individual owner at everyone else’s expense.
The owners needs to apply for a special resolution by-law (at his own expense) to install the electrical connection (again at his expense).
The only exception would be if the power supply was shown on the original strata plan but wasn’t there.
The opinions offered in these Forum posts and replies are not intended to be taken as legal advice. Readers with serious issues should consult experienced strata lawyers.
I think Tricky New Owner is misguided at best. He wants to make a change to common property. There are processes for approving this, but the OC doesn’t pay for the owner’s changes – the lot owner pays.
I was told by an electrician that running a power point off a lighting circuit is illegal and dangerous. Lighting wiring is thinner than GPO wiring.
Marvin
Your electrician is correct. Wiring for lighting is designed for just that, and should have fuses or circuit breakers to match. Overloading by using heavy current devices such as vacuum cleaners could result in damage to the wiring and in a worst case scenario could lead to a fire.
If power points have been added to this wiring by enthusiastic amateurs they may not have effective earthing. Some years ago there was no requirement for light fittings to be earthed, so an earth connection may not have been readily available. If there is no earth it is quite possible that in the event of a fault developing in an appliance connected to the circuit the metal casing of that appliance could become live. If the circuit was earthed then the fuse would blow or circuit breaker trip cutting off the power.
These days there are additional protections available in the form of RCDs, which are highly desirable but not always fitted to older installations, very unlikely to be found on a lighting circuit.
This is a question for PeterC – what is the rule or by-law in the ACT about not being able to prevent changes that are beneficial to the environment? Is that a planning thing or does it apply to strata by-laws too. For instance, would the installation of an electric car charging station be exempt for restrictions on changes to common property?
The opinions offered in these Forum posts and replies are not intended to be taken as legal advice. Readers with serious issues should consult experienced strata lawyers.
@JimmyT said:
This is a question for PeterC – what is the rule or by-law in the ACT about not being able to prevent changes that are beneficial to the environment? Is that a planning thing or does it apply to strata by-laws too. For instance, would the installation of an electric car charging station be exempt for restrictions on changes to common property?It comes from the Unit Titles (Management) Act 2011.
An ordinary resolution would be sufficient to install a charging station on common property for general use if the various requirements of s.23 below are satisfied.
The EC could approve it for the use of an individual unit owner as a ‘minor use’ of common property if it would not interfere with reasonable use and enjoyment of common property by other unit owners or be detrimental to safety or the appearance of the common property.
IE it would be OK if next to an unit owner’s parking space and not getting in anybody’s way. On the other hand, if it effectively gave a common property parking space to the exclusive use of one unit owner it would require a special privilege (unopposed resolution) for the parking space.
If it were for installation within a unit area then any rule that would prevent it would be of no effect. s.108(3)d.
s.108(3)d “An amendment to the rules of an owners corporation has no effect to the extent that it results in the rules— … prohibiting or restricting the installation, operation or maintenance of sustainability or utility infrastructure.”
s.23 Installation of sustainability and utility infrastructure on common property
1) An owners corporation for a units plan may, if authorised by an ordinary resolution—(a) approve the installation of sustainability or utility infrastructure on the common property; and(b) approve the financing of the installation of the sustainability or utility infrastructure; and
(c) grant an easement or any other right over any part of the common property for the purpose of the installation, operation or maintenance of the sustainability or utility infrastructure.
2) The owners corporation may only approve the installation, and financing, of sustainability or utility infrastructure under this section if satisfied, after considering the following, the long-term benefit of the proposed infrastructure is greater than the cost of installing and maintaining the infrastructure
(a) a site plan of the proposed infrastructure;
(b) a maintenance plan for the proposed infrastructure;
(c) if the proposed infrastructure is to be financed by a third party—the terms of the financing arrangements;
(d) the direct and indirect costs of the proposed infrastructure;
(e) the long-term environmental sustainability benefits of the proposed infrastructure;
(f) any other matter prescribed by regulation.
3) The owners corporation may, by ordinary resolution, decide to hold sustainability infrastructure (including existing sustainability infrastructure) installed on common property and any income earned from the operation of the infrastructure as trustee for—
(a) if all the units are owned by the same person—the owner; or(b) in any other case—the unit owners as tenants in common in shares proportional to their unit entitlement.
Example—incomeincome from an electricity feed-in tariff scheme
Note1 If the owners corporation does not decide to hold sustainability infrastructure as trustee for the unit owners, it holds the infrastructure as agent for the owners (see s 20 (1)).Note 2 An example is part of the Act, is not exhaustive and may extend, but does not limit, the meaning of the provision in which it appears (see Legislation Act, s 126 and s 132).
4) For section 71, an owners corporation is not carrying on a business
if it receives income from the operation of the sustainability infrastructure and the income is used only to pay—(a) costs, including financing costs, in relation to the installation and maintenance of the infrastructure; or(b) costs of utilities used by, or provided to, the owners corporation.
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