- This topic has 7 replies, 6 voices, and was last updated 13 years, 5 months ago by .
-
Topic
-
Recently it was decided that a tree overhanging the fence of a block of strata apartments needed pruning (as it does every year) – for a variety a of reasons.
It was raised with the strata manager who advised to call a tree pruner/lopper to organise a time. On this instruction, one of the strata members did so and the tree was pruned.
Apparently the tree was one that (due to its increased size this year) required council approval to prune.
The strata manager says it was not their responsibility to raise/check whether council approval was required. The tree pruner/lopper says it was the strata manager's responsibility and not theirs.
The strata has engaged and paid for a professional strata manager and a professional tree pruner/lopper, but the strata is still responsible?
-
Replies
-
The Strata Manager should be acting on behalf of the Owners Corporation, in a recent case at our property our Strata Manager had no problem applying for and obtaining approval from the council to remove a tree which was past its use by date. As the tree pruner is not the owner of the land, he does not have responsibility in my understanding. If your Owners Corporation has delegated authority to a Managing Agent who is prepared to fob you off in this manner, perhaps you should consider changing to one who is prepared to put in a bit more effort.
I agree with DaveB but bear in mind that anything the strata manager does above and beyond their normal duties can (and should) be charged for.
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.
Or… some prankster phones or e-mails a strata mgr. saying they are Mr X, chairman of SP…… and request a tree be pruned. Unless the contract specifies that the Strata Mgr (SM) must receive signed minutes of a properly convened meeting then presumably this is good enough.
Meebee said:
In the meantime, the member of the strata who called the tree lopper on the instruction of the strata agent has been issued with an infringement notice from the council. I do not see that it is this person who should have the infringement recorded against them as they were merely acting as a conduit on instructions from the managing agent (which is in turn instructed by the owners corporation?).
From your replies, it seems that it is not the responsibility of the tree lopper. Is it also not the the responsibility of the managing agent? If not, it seems that the owners corporation should be the one recorded on the infringement notice?
The problem is that technically the Strata Manager can only follow the instructions of the Owners Corporation and the Executive Committee. So at worst all the SM did was to offer bad advice. The strata manager does not instruct the EC … they can only advise or carry out instructions given to them (unless decision-making powers have been devolved to them formally, and even then, they are acting as the EC and OC's agents).
I'm guessing Council won't care who's ultimately responsible – they just want a name they can put on an infringement notice.
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:
The problem is that technically the Strata Manager can only follow the instructions of the Owners Corporation and the Executive Committee.
This technical problem always strikes me as a good excuse for strata managers not to do their job properly.
It’s like lawyers taking instructions from their clients… Given that the strata manager or lawyer is supposed to be the professional who knows the legalities of the matter, they have a perfect cop-out – the ignorance of their client(s).
Our (now sacked) former strata manager used this sort of circular logic on our owners corporation to justify failures to act – even when issues were long-standing and and well known. It always made me question what we were actually paying for if all they had to do was follow instructions from people with little or no expertise (ie owners/EC).
People,
Can we please apply a bit of logic. A strata managing agent should be considered to be just that, not an expert arborist, building engineer, lawyer etc. A strata manager should be able to guide an owners corporation where to obtain the right advice on any particular matter so that the OC can reasonably rely on that advice before instructing the SM as to what they want done. Alternately, if OC’s are wanting strata managers to be experts in all areas, than be prepared to pay the appropriate cost for this.Consider the rates that accountants, lawyers and doctors charge, and they are typically focused on a particular area, then consider the diversity of the skills and knowledge required for a strata manager, and ask, would you do it for what you pay them. Break it down to what you pay individually as an owner, typically this may be in the area of $150-200 per annum. Compare this with how much you pay your accountant to complete your tax return, once a year.
In the above scenario I believe that the owners corporation has been let down by the arborist, they are the professional in this field and should have known and advised the SM that a council application was required for the works being requested by the OC.
Apologies for the rant, but a little perspective on things may help.
Mr S
- You must be logged in to reply to this topic.