QLD Safety inspection "threat" - am I overreacting?

I have a few properties with Place. For the last few years they've been sending me these emails (and multiple follow up emails) about a safety inspection service from a company called PropertySafe. They claim that they may be able to save me thousands of dollars by pre-emptively identifying safety issues that I could be liable for. I can't help but think: I need to pay for this? Isn't that YOUR job? And...doesn't all the other insurance (both mine and agents') cover anything else that was missed?

Now before I go on there's one thing I want to be clear about: I am the very anthesis of a slum lord. I go out of my way to give my tenants a great place to live. I respond to 99.9% of maintenance requests almost instantly and I never try to cheap out. I am really annoyed from a few perspectives:

1) As mentioned, isn't it YOUR job as the agent to do regular checks and identify issues that need to be addressed? What else am I paying you for? I already spent money on a building and inspection report on purchase, and rectified all issues that came out of it. From here on out, it's YOUR job as the agent. And then all the insurance both you and I pay for should cover the rest.

2) As I do not shy away from my responsibilities, this leads me to this next bit that triggers me the most...included in this email is this:

Please click here to accept or decline our recommendation and see the FAQs.​

I'm sorry...what? You want me to click that link; aka a legal record of whether I've read and explicitly declined your strongly worded suggestion that I pay for an additional service to protect myself from potential litigation?

This is seriously rubs me the wrong way. Although I wonder if I'm just overreacting? I think it was this link that really annoyed me. It feels like a threat, and to get this threat repeatedly every year is starting to really grind my gears. PAY NOW OR RISK BEING SUED! CLICK THIS LINK SO WE HAVE A RECORD OF WHETHER YOU TOLD US TO ****-OFF!

I just want someone to manage my property. What the hell is this?

 

i think that last bit might qualify as extortion , maybe you should talk to your lawyer first ( with the correspondence in hand ),

i believe the office of fair trading might be worth wasting a phone call on as well ( keep records of that communication )

 

Nah I hate this stuff as well. It shouldn't be legal imo.

Similar to those PMs that try and scare you into doing regular smoke alarm checks above what is legally or reasonably required.

 

My take on this is one of who's liable if something goes wrong and the tenant sues.

If something did occur, the agent can claim that they're not a qualified safety inspector and they did offer you the service. You ignored or declined the offer, so not their responsibility.

It is BS. Owner occupiers don't do half the safety checks that landlords do. Many owner occupied properties don't have compliant smoke alarms. Landlords are seen as a service provider and wealthy, therefore we're held to a higher standard.

If a reasonable person got injured in your property, they'd likely recognise that they were clumsy or unlucky. When money is on the table, a lot of people aren't reasonable.

 

That's what it feels like!

 

Kind of reminds me of the government who seems to enjoy tipping people upside down and shaking them until all the money falls out into their coffers. Sounds like a clever "value add" someone has come up with and yes, probably a way to deny any responsibility if something goes awry.

 

These are your obligations:




You then have Landlords Insurance to protect yourself re: liability issues should anything arise.

If you really want to be thorough, pay a private certifier to issue/re-issue the Certificate of Occupancy which means the premise complies with the DA/BCA etc.

 

1.Check with your insurer.
2. Speak with management business owner.
3. Have a private conversation with them outlining why you should consider staying with them.
4. Let us know how it goes. ( He who pays the Piper calls the Tune)
I hope this helps

 

I just treat this sort of thing as spam...

 

I generally do too. But the wording of this particular email is what inflames me. Junk is one thing, but borderline threats is another.

 

To be clear, Property Managers are not trained in building and compliance. We can identify most obvious safety hazards, but almost none of us would be familiar with the various Australian standards covering the different parts of your home OR when certain standards applied to certain areas- for example, does your PM know if the railings on your stairs/deck are compliant, and if they aren't, do they know when/how they need to be bought up to current standards?

That having been said, I completely agree that the Property Safe marketing strategy is pure and simple extorsion. The emails are intended to be threatening in tone to scare you into going ahead, and when you do, it doesn't get much better- the report will proably compel you to go ahead with a hundred little bits and pieces that any sensible person would consider irrelevant. I've had a number of clients come to me specifically because they were so insulted by the Property Safe emails, so you're not alone in your feelings.

It's extra frustrating because the concept is quite cool. I recently posed the question on a Property Management facebook page with thousands of Property Managers viewing, and NO ONE could make an economical suggestion on how we can check building compliance items- the only options were a $500 B&P inspection or risk falling victim to Propertysafe scare tactics!? All because I wanted to check whether a set of stairs was compliant?! (Also- for anyone who thinks we should just ask a builder, more easily said than done to get an honest answer...! Everyone just wants you to open your wallet!)

 

Whether the stairs (as an example) are compliant or to former AS etc isnt a matter that any owner should be overly concerned about. They need to know that the structure appears sound and "fit for purpose". Neither the landlord, the agent or tenant are experts and DO NOT NEED to be one. If a tenant has a concern you get the issue inspected. Otherwise you cant be found negligent for a matter that is not reasonable for a person to know about. Maintain your property insurance and it includes public liability cover. A balcony / deck can be 100% compliant and still collapse if the tenant invites 20 mates over and bounce up and own to music on the structure.

Engaging a professional to find problems so they can price a solution may enhance, not minimise, risks. Their conduct is exploitative. Tell the agent you are considering ending their agency because of this conduct. I would instruct the PM you decline the service and welcome a future tenant report of any real or apparent defect but do not seek to find problems that may financially benefit their repair agents. That is what this dishonest conduct concerns.

 

This better articulates what I had in mind. 100% agreed.

 

Couldn't agree with this more. I've had to explain this so many times to landlords and strata lot owners. I guess it might sound counter-intuitive at first instance.

But the thing is, what an owner/lessor might "reasonably have known" is actually increased when you start doing investigations above what you might reasonably need to do.

That increases your duty of care in negligence terms.

 

To be clear, Property managers should know a heck of a lot more than most of them do. Their Ignorance of Australian standards or general safety knowledge regarding electrical issues or safety rails that type of thing is ********. The group I am with now know absolutely nothing except collect the rent, support the tenant instead of the owner and it goes on. I call them tick and flick experts because that is basically what they do. I am crying out for a property manager who knows his stuff and will back the owner and not the tenant and.....knows at least something about house/apartment safety.

 

Your ignorance about property managers responsibilities is mind blowing ...
Never at any time during my over 40 years managing properties did I have to know Australian Standards or be responsible for any electrical issues/safety railings that may arise.
Can I suggest you look up the subject requirements to train as a Property Manager in an accredited PM course.

 

I dont have to, I just stated my opinion in my previous post and I stand by it. It is the most over rated job in any industry.

 

The scary thing is, there is no educational requirement for someone to become a B&P Inspector in NSW, this requirement was dropped several years ago by the OFT.

So do you know whether the guy doing your B&P got their licence from a pack of Corn Flakes? You really need to vet your consultants to ensure that they are capable of doing the task at hand not just complying with the requirements of their Professional Indemnity Insurer.

 

Surprise , surprise

 

Why ? Thats not what they need to possess as experience and qualifications in real estate. I do tax and give advice on repairs. I know jack about how to repair a set of stairs. And see no reason to learn. I value a PM who knows their industry, their tenants and our property. Its a juggling act. I would argue made terribly hard by any owner who expects them to be a skilled trade professional in all elements of a building and to do as they are told. A PM must balance the needs of tenant and owner in compliance with the state residential tenancies act and its constant evolution. There are tenants who are terrible who need to be managed and some owners are irrational and need to be managed. I suspect you are the latter. Bad owners often cycle through PMs and always blame issues on the PM rather than their own attitudes and views.

If I ask PM's....Bad owners or bad tenants. Which is worse ? wonder what they will say.