Advice needed - apartment water penetration defect; strata responsibility?

I live in an apartment that is 5 years old (purchased two years ago).

Recently while I was moving furniture around, I discovered mould on my bedroom carpet. I was worried there was a floor leak somewhere, so my bulding manager had a look and said it was probably due to some spilt water that was left trapped under the mattress on the floor - I was pretty sure I had never spilt water before but the stench was unbearable so I had the carpet replaced. Fast forward a month, it turns out my neighbour has had the exact same experience. There's now a patch of mould in my wardrobe carpet too, which I hadn't noticed because I keep my heater in front of that area and don't check it frequently (thankfully there's no smell coming form this one).

The building manager has emailed the Building corporation and the Strata corporation about this, stating that there's probably a water penetration defect. We haven't heard back from either of them yet and the manager has cautioned me that there are two other neighbouring apartments in the same complex who have had a mould issue in the carpets and had to wait a long time to resolve that issue (I'm actually not sure if it's been resolved at all, they might have just replaced the carpet for them and not actually investigated the defect). I might have to move out next year because of my studies and was hoping to rent out the apartment; but now I don't feel comfortable at all renting it out and having to tell the tenants to avoid storing anything directly on top of where the water penetration defect seems to be, and having to check every few weeks to make sure the mould hasn't recurred.

I have two questions:
1. What steps can I take to make sure that the Building and Strata corporation take this seriously and implement the proper measures (investigating the cause of the defect, repairing it etc.) without too much delay? Is this something I can report to Fair Trading or Consumer Affairs?

2. Are there any costs that I will have to shoulder? Unfortunately I do not have home insurance (stupid, I know, wasn't expecting anything to go this wrong in a 3 year old apartment when I first looked at it). Is this something that is wholly the Building and Strata's responsibility? Is it too late to get home insurance now? Any suggestions for insurance in Sydney?

Would really appreciate any advice - I have no clue where to go from here.

 

You will have building insurance as this is paid for by the Body Corporate. You may not have contents insurance (which is stupid as you say, because it covers you for fire, theft, accidental damage etc/. none of which has anything to do with the building being 3 yo or 30 yo) BUT you may find that your carpet (being a 'content') going mouldy may not be covered by contents insurance unless the water penetration was a one-off accident caused by say, a storm. It would pay to talk to an insurance broker re policy T&C's.

 

It sounds like you are part of a large strata and this may be as simple as a leaking pipe or potentially quote a complex issue.

If the building manager is not providing a response that involves an immediate investigation, I would suggest that you directly address the strata committee and attend the next meeting. Plenty of photos to help the understanding of the issue.


You are part of the owners corporation as an owner and if you want to get things done you should join the strata committee.

 

Thanks for that reply! I will look into contents insurance ASAP for any future damages (-:
With regards to the carpet that I have already replaced, do I have any chance of reimbursement from either the Building corporation or Strata considering that it was a building defect and not a result of my actions?

 

I think you firstly have to get to the point where it is recognised as a building defect - and from what you have posted so far, I don't think that is proven just yet. While you are waiting for that to happen, I'd be emailing the BC your statement of claim, so they have that on record for when the time comes.

 

You might want to look at the recent posts like this one ....

 

+1

I'd be going over the building manager's head if he's not going to do anything about it.

 

Hope everyone's had a good Easter break. Some updates:

BM says abseilers were sent by BC to 'do some work' and that he's advised strata to add this to an existing defect report of the complex. Apparently there's no way to confirm if this has been solved for good and the residents have been told to 'just monitor the carpet' for future recurrence.
This is pretty frustrating as I'd like some peace of mind and not have to replace my carpet again if this recurs. Is there any way we can request a proper and thorough investigation?
Also - the building is nearing 5 years. I've read that disputes with BC can be settled through Fair Trading within 6 years of the building completion date. Does this mean that if the problem recurs after the 6 year period is up BC will have no obligation to do further repairs?

 

A plumber/leak detector with an infrared camera can non-invasively check for change in temperature indicative of moisture ingression/build up/penetration etc. I think this is a good cost effective place to start.

 

Have you been to a strata committee meeting yet?