Body Corporate Insurance Issue

LLunarboogie on 19/07/2018 - 14:21

Last night plumbing that services my apartment and my three neighbour's (either side and above) got blocked by tree root damage (assessed by plumber) and water gushed out of my bathroom drain and over the course of several hours, flooded my apartment. I was the only apartment to bear the brunt. Body Corporate has taken responsibility for calling out a plumber (granted it was 8 hours after the start of the blockage) and he has stopped the flood but my carpets are soaked and BC is baulking at indemnifying me. They are saying it's my responsibility and I should claim under my house and contents insurance, which I don't have.

What are my options here and who is right and why?

Now I am even colder in Canberra.

Home & Garden

Comments

QW3RTY on 19/07/2018 - 14:30

+4

Awful situation to be in OP, sorry to hear.

Typically, Body Corporate should insure the overall structure and common areas, while unit owners are responsible for their internal premises. I would request a copy of the Body Corporate's insurance, as you're entitled to as a unit owner, and immediately seek legal council.

I don't expect that you'll be able to claim under the Body Corporate's insurance, but by all means, do your due diligence. You'll never know if you don't investigate.

Unfortunately, as you have no insurance, any claim you have will require for you to go up against the insurance company of the Body Corporate which will be an uphill battle from the get go.
- rambutann on 19/07/2018 - 16:57
  
  This summary is bang on the noggin.
  
  I have personally lived in a couple of apartments as an owner - in all cases, the body corporate insurance would not cover your specified incident.
  Their insurance covers everything outside of your 4 walls, or anything that affects more than 1 person. In the case of carpet, they will not cover it.
  
  I have never had home/contents insurance in an apartment due to the cost benefit analysis showing that the likelihood of an incident occurring like what you are experiencing is very low, and the cost of replacing carpet is also very low.
  - HighAndDry on 19/07/2018 - 17:08
    
    -1
    
    They will have cover for damage caused by (not just damage to) common property. In this case, the common property being the pipe, and the damage being the damage to OP's unit.
    
    Think of it like how comprehensive insurance for a car will also include third party damage. This is the same thing.
dcep on 19/07/2018 - 14:35

-1

strata only has building insurance which doesn't cover your carpets/belongings.
- HighAndDry on 19/07/2018 - 14:40
  
  -1
  
  No, BC will have insurance to cover… well situations like this. Building insurance is one thing - this is separate.
  - Lunarboogie on 19/07/2018 - 14:53
    
    +4
    
    Name checks out.
HighAndDry on 19/07/2018 - 14:40

+1
No, as you've set it out, it's pretty black and white the BC's problem - something which is their responsibility to maintain (the pipes) failed in a way which was not your fault and caused you damage.

Write them a strongly worded letter (but stay civil, obviously), post it registered post, and give them 7 days to respond.

You might have to:

Go ACAT (without or without a lawyer), or

Get a lawyer, and hope it gets resolved without having to go to ACAT.
- CheapSticks on 19/07/2018 - 14:41
  
  Agree with High & Dry - strong worded letter helps with the lazy strata comm members.
  - Lunarboogie on 19/07/2018 - 14:53
    
    +2
    
    Thanks. I will do this. I think they're trying to bluff me so this letter will raise the stakes.
    - ThithLord on 19/07/2018 - 16:20
      
      Good luck and don't forget to update us
- Cheap Charlie on 19/07/2018 - 15:04
  
  Along similar lines, I would proceed with rectification ASAP funded by your self (if that is achievable).
  Collate the total expense and issue a letter of demand addressed to the Body Corp.
  The Body Corps insurer should pay out in such a situation.
  Confirm the small claims limits in your state.
  
  Body Corp committes can tend to knee jerk react without being fully informed.
CheapSticks on 19/07/2018 - 14:40

+1

i think the body corporate insurance should cover your carpet etc…in our building when the neighbour downstairs had issue with water leak which flooded their apartment - the body corp paid for the plumber plus change of flooring…

Is there something like fair trading in ACT? Call them and clear it - in the meanwhile speak to your strata manager. Ignore Strata comm execs for now.
boomramada on 19/07/2018 - 14:41

Its all depend on what kind of cover your strata got
More info here http://www.insurancecouncil.com.au/assets/Consumer%20tips/St…
But you should always have content insurance.
- Lunarboogie on 19/07/2018 - 14:52
  
  I know I got caught out on home and contents. With rising premiums and excess payments I kind of figured I'd run the gauntlet. Even now, if I had paid $400 for insurance plus another $400 excess, I'm only out by about $200 as it will be $1000 to get those dryer/blower things hired for 3 days. Provided nothing else goes wrong all year…
  - boomramada on 19/07/2018 - 15:59
    
    False economy, I hope you not driving around in a uninsured car :)
    But something I learn, if your window got broken, Strata insurance is the one to contact, but not when your house got flooded.
    You may have a case, if you start emailing some of the ppl that mention on this thread. good luck.
    - HighAndDry on 19/07/2018 - 16:45
      
      Usually if your unit gets flooded, it's a problem with the pipes in your unit - which makes it your problem not Strata's. But in this case the flooding was caused by a blockage further down in a part of the pipe under strata responsibility, and so it becomes a strata issue.
      
      I am assuming that the tree roots didn't block a part of the pipe that's somehow in OP's unit.
Ocker on 19/07/2018 - 14:58

+1

BC is normally responsible for everything below the floor boards and above the roof-line, and and consequential damage emanating from faults at those levels.
- Lunarboogie on 19/07/2018 - 15:08
  
  +1
  
  Thanks. Sounds like I could be between a board and a high place.
garetz on 19/07/2018 - 15:04

If they refuse to take responsibility, you might need to sick your insurance company on your strata.
- Cheap Charlie on 19/07/2018 - 15:06
  
  They are saying it's my responsibility and I should claim under my house and contents insurance, which I don't have.
- Lunarboogie on 19/07/2018 - 15:06
  
  Therein lies my problem. I don't have insurance. Ozbargain runs deep in me.
  - tsunamisurfer on 19/07/2018 - 16:00
    
    +1
    
    Please don't make it sound like the decision of self-insurance = Ozbargain.
    
    Most ozbargainers remain responsible.
    
    If you had insurance you could have avoided this drama as the insurance would handle it for you.
    
    You have elected to self-insure, a choice I respect, but you now have to accept you have to fight a major corporation each step of the way.
  - HighAndDry on 19/07/2018 - 16:06
    
    I'm not going to go as far as saying that not buying insurance is always irresponsible, but it still involves a cost-benefit consideration that isn't as simple as "what has the lowest upfront cost."
    
    This isn't even the worst example either, because in the end this will cost you time and effort more than money since it was the fault of the BC. But, knock on wood, if it was an issue with your internal plumbing that ended up flooding not just your apartment but also the common area and the apartments under you - without insurance you could be looking at an incredibly high repair bill.
    - dcep on 19/07/2018 - 16:23
      
      does home contents insurance cover damages to others ?
    - HighAndDry on 19/07/2018 - 16:29
      
      @phunkydude: Very much depends on the individual policy, but all the policies I've seen cover this kind of damage (usually under the heading "legal liability cover" or similar).
Mike88 on 19/07/2018 - 19:10

Possibly try bypassing your BC all together and go straight to the insurance company. I have had multiple people in my apartment block do this, BC didn’t like it but got what they needed
- Lunarboogie on 19/07/2018 - 21:08
  
  That's a great idea. The BC automaton keeps giving me the rehearsed lines so I might go around them.
  
  They also have an after hour line which of course went unanswered when I called at midnight. It seems they are at fault on a number of levels yet are avoiding their responsibility behind a technicality.
bobbified on 19/07/2018 - 23:38

This happened in my apartment building a few years ago and (it was a friend's apartment on a lower level) and the building manager insisted that the carpet isn't covered. They paid for the ceiling, which was where the water came from and everything else.

I went to do some research and found that carpet really was an exclusion. I don't understand the logic behind it though.
- HighAndDry on 20/07/2018 - 14:05
  
  An exclusion to what? It really doesn't matter even if it's not in the BC's insurance, they're still liable for damage caused by common property or faults in common property. It just means the BC will have to pay for it out of pocket.
  - bobbified on 20/07/2018 - 15:04
    
    It just means the BC will have to pay for it out of pocket.
    
    I know what you're saying and I agree.
    
    http://sskb.com.au/what-does-my-strata-insurance-cover-in-vi…
    
    Read under owner-occupiers. There must be a reason why carpets and certain things are specifically excluded by legislation and given that it's excluded by legislation, I'm guessing there'll probably be corresponding legislation to limit the OC from those liabilities.
    - HighAndDry on 20/07/2018 - 15:08
      
      +1
      
      Wrong place to look.
      
      https://www.consumer.vic.gov.au/housing/owners-corporations/…
      
      Carpets and other property of unit owners are not directly covered by that insurance, it's covered under the general umbrella of "damage or injury caused to third parties". From the above link:
      
      Public liability insurance covers your owners corporation’s liability to pay compensation in the case of any:
      
      damage or loss of property.
      
      That's what would be applicable here. The BC's negligence in maintaining the pipe caused it to be blocked, that blockage caused damage to OP's property. The BC is liable to pay compensation to OP because of this, and that payment would be covered under this.
    - bobbified on 21/07/2018 - 13:18
      
      @HighAndDry:
      
      You're right about the BC still being responsbile. I found it quite interesting that carpets are excluded by insurance.
      
      Thanks for the info though!
[Deactivated] on 20/07/2018 - 18:08

go to your local hire place (coates etc) and hire some blowers and carpert cleaner or contact a carpet cleaner they will come round and use the carpet cleaner to suck up all the water and supply a carpet dryer.

The strata should pay for this as it is their fault that the drain flooded, and they should be claiming under their public liability. although I would have thought building insurance would include carpet.

I had an issue with a sail shade that I had installed that was hail damaged and the strata said it wasn't covered by building insurance, I pushed them and told them to submit the claim which they eventually did and it was covered. Strata companies are awful to deal with and getting them to anything is really hard.

Body Corporate Insurance Issue

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