Who pays? Me or neighbour?

Neighbour at PPOR (apartment) has a leak in their bathroom that’s spread over to floor and walls in the corner of my living room adjacent to their bathroom.

I’ve already informed our body corporate and have engaged a building services company to assess the water damage and write a formal report/recommendation.

I also intend to invite my neighbour over for coffee or dinner to open a conversation about this matter in a friendly way.

My questions:

1)Will the insurance of the body corp cover the cost of the mould removal in my unit? Or is my neighbour responsible for fixing the water damage given the leak was from their unit? Or will I have to foot the bill out of my own pocket?

2)Is the neighbour required by law to fix his leak?

3)What recourse will I have if my neighbour refuses to seal the leaks property, and the water damage reoccurs?

If anyone’s had experience with neighbourly disputes in an apartment building, would love to hear your input. Many thanks!

 

The neighbour is probably unaware that the bathroom is leaking, so do the neighbourly thing and let them know as they may need to get it repaired but it will require BC involvement as it is going through common walls.

Is it under the original builder's warranty?

BC insurance generally won't cover wall finishes inside your apartment.

 

Similar situation
Body Corporate said
neighbour were not responsible for damage but responsible for fixing leak
Body corporate said they would claim it under the insurance
But it was under the excess so I had to pay ($400) ...

 

Body corporate should pay.
Marg

 

Excess comes from BC, not your pocket.

 

Who would you go to if the committee refuse to pay excess ?

 

@Beano - Strata manager

 

Hi there.

Assuming that the leak is the responsibility of the neighbour (i.e. a leak within their lot), they will have to fix the problem.

If the leak turns out to be a body corporate issue (e.g. burst mains pipe on common property), the body corporate should fix the leak.

Either the neighbour or the body corporate will be responsible for the leak, that responsible party should bear all costs - you shouldn’t be disadvantaged directly but someone else’s maintenance failure.

The person responsible for the failure (per above) is responsible for fixing the damage to your apartment - or if insurance is involved, they should pay the excess. Body corporate insurance generally covers all building elements including interior walls and finishes, but not any contents items.

Someone mentioned that if the body corporate failed in its maintenance obligations and the committee refuses to pay the excess, you go to the body corporate manager. The body corporate manager does not have power over the committee - it’s the other way around. They may however point you in the direction of your state’s dispute resolution framework.

Matt

 

Thanks heaps everyone for the replies (especially @Matthew Savage for the detailed info!)

@Scott No Mates unfortunately the building was constructed in the 1980s, so any builders warranty would’ve long expired.

One more question - so once I receive notice that the leak has been fixed, do I engage the mould removal guys myself, have the invoice sent to me, which I will then forward to the BC to pass onto the insurance co?

Or do I have to request that the BC organise the mould guys and have the invoice made out directly to them?

Thanks heaps!

 

Given the safety issues around mould, I think you’re safe to get that treated right away and then be reimbursed by the insurer. Insurers generally don’t contest any ‘urgent’ repairs to make the place safe - broken glass, securing the place, water in electrical fittings, health & safety issues etc.

Something like repainting a ceiling should wait until after a claim goes in and gets authorised. Insurers generally won’t assess claims like that under about $5K damage so chances are they’ll just approve any reasonable costs for repairing and painting.

Side note on insurance - generally there has to be some unforseeable loss to trigger a claim. Mould indicates the leak occurred for a period of time and was not a once-off. You would just need to be clear that as soon as the leak was detected (ie when it became known to you) then it was raised right away, and not left to get worse for a few weeks.

Matt

 

@Matthew Savage Thank you!

 

We had a similar issue

1. Neighbour paid for all repairs (Theirs and ours) as they had done a Bathroom renovation 2yrs prior and the waterproofing was the issue, so the BC made them pay for everything. It was in the approval of works give by the BC prior to any renovation work undertaken in our building.

Not sure if this would have changed if the bathroom was original as our building was build in 1979.

Lucky for us it was some reneder and paint only.