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Hi everyone
My first post and hoping for some insights/perspectives – is it too much to ask that the Strata Managers treat our money like it’s their own?
The background to our situation is this, block of 6 units (mine is tenanted so I’m not there all the time) and judging from our latest astronomical water bill there has clearly been a water leak in our building for some time – the first I was told was that we needed an EGM to raise a special levy to cover the bills so our admin fund doesn’t go into arrears!
Based on the little image that shows ‘this time last year’ on the bill strata have scanned and sent me water use has been doubling each quarter for approx the last year.
I rang Sydney Water and they confirmed yes usage it has been increasing each quarter.
The other thing that irks me is the bill was sent early July and the strata managers sat on it for 5 weeks before bringing it to our attention.
My question I guess is what are the obligations of strata managers to the owners in this scenario?
How high or suspicious does a water bill (or other bill) need to get before they will think, maybe we should let the Committee know there’s potentially a problem.
I am guessing the way they operate is nothing was scrutinised/triggered until it flagged the account wouldn’t cover the water bill (which is the thousands) and that was what prompted calling an EGM.
I am really frustrated and annoyed (and I get that we’ll have to pay the bill), but surely it’s their job to be on top of these things and flag an anomaly like water usage doubling each quarter for the last 12 months?
The bills are sent direct to them so the only thing I can think of is to ask to see a copy of all the bills (which they’ll no doubt charge for).
Do I have grounds to complain they are not meeting their obligations?
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Yes, I would complain. They should flag something like this sooner. As treasurer I made a point of checking such things myself too. Sometimes the manager picked up a high water bill, which was due to leaks we got every few years, and alerted me. Other times they didn’t comment. Depended a bit on which manager we had at the time. Some were more diligent than others.
Could it be something like a plumbing problem? Or have you thought of asking Sydney Water about leakage in the street outside? Have you looked outside to see for yourself where the drainage holes are in the street, are they clear and clean after a storm, or do they overflow and the Council needs to clear them? Are tgeir connections to your building in sound working order? They may suggest the building’s plumber could check the water pipes in your building for leakages. However, they have a responsibility too, to ensure sound water flows. Could you ask other owners if they have plumbing problems or the like? Plus what their take on the bill is. Definitely complain if you find that it’s certainly an anomaly.
@Clayton6 said:
Do I have grounds to complain they are not meeting their obligations?You can complain but it’s not really your strata manager’s job to monitor water usage in your building (and with only six units, they aren’t going to be making too much out of your scheme anyway).
Yes, they may well hit the scheme with extra charges for sending you copies of the water bills. But it’s an issue for a number of reasons so you need to get on top of it. You might start with a mail-out to residents asking if they have any problems with water leaks or have noticed any unusual activity.
Increased water bills could be signs of sub-letting and over-crowding, or even hydroponic drug cultivation. It may be time to have a sniff around and find out what’s going on
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.
Another reason for the increased water bill could be residents washing their cars, and inviting non residents / friends to wash their cars on your property as well. This could especially be the case if your complex has a designated car wash bay.
Yes, you can complain, but I believe it is really the responsibility of the committee/Treasurer to ensure that all invoices are scrutinised prior to being paid. Expecting the strata manager to do it, is a bad idea in my experience.
We recently had a Sydney water bill increase from $8,000 to $40,000 over one quarter. But after much agitation from me (as Secretary) and panic by the building manager who could not identify a leak anywhere, it was confirmed by Sydney Water that there was a faulty meter (they guessed the usage!). The bill was reduced accordingly.
As Jimmy has said, there could be several reasons for the increased water usage Also, take a walk around the complex and check that there are no obvious leaks, and check the meters as well.
Good luck.
@Pamster said:
Another reason for the increased water bill could be residents washing their cars, and inviting non residents / friends to wash their cars on your property as well. This could especially be the case if your complex has a designated car wash bay.Sounds like some personal experience here. Beware the Carwash Crooks!
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’m in a block of 18 units, and our water bills were going up. A plumber advised us to have a look at the water meter, at a time when residents would be asleep.
He said that if there was activity at this time, it was probably a leak somewhere. It was checked a couple of times at about 2:00 am, and all lights were out in the block. The meter was still ticking over.
We then went through the block, knocking on all doors, asking everybody if they had any plumbing problems. It was found that one of the tenants, had a broken toilet cistern, that was flushing continuously. They were asked to have it repaired or replaced.
When most bills are routine and consistent from one month or quarter to the next, it should not be too hard for strata managers to be sufficiently on the ball to notice the occasional one that deviates substantially from business as usual. Similarly, the treasurer should be on the ball too. One or the other, preferably both, should pick it up.
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