BC homeowner holds strata accountable for repairs, wins over $1K | Daily Hive

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A BC homeowner sued her building’s strata, claiming that the strata was not fulfilling its obligation to repair her unit.

In response, the strata claimed that it had met its obligations and also suggested that the homeowner did not prove any damage occurred to her unit (SL7).

The strata also denied that it acted significantly unfairly toward the homeowner, Abigail Casement.

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In August 2022, the main water pipe that serviced Casement’s unit began leaking. It’s located under the front patio and concrete floor slab. The strata repaired the pipe the day after it started leaking, “partly by cutting through part of the front patio” from inside the unit.

Initially, the strata told Casement that interior repairs to SL7 were her responsibility, though eventually, it paid her to cover the cost of the repairs.

The tribunal decision states that as of the time of the tribunal dispute, the repairs were not made to Casement’s front patio.

In October 2022, there were suggestions that another leak may have occurred. The minutes of an October strata meeting also stated there were small hairline cracks in the concrete floor of the SL7 carport “but that no further investigation would be completed.”

In December 2022, the strata’s landscape contractor had been informed that there was a “low-cost fix” for the front patio with directions to “basically just fill in the hole.”

The quote for the retaining walls was “fairly substantial” and would require a general meeting for work to be approved.

“Photographs in evidence show the portion of the front patio that was removed to allow for the water pipe repair was filled in with pieces of wood and pieces of the concrete patio that were removed,” the tribunal decision states.

Casement requested a strata council hearing on December 31, 2022, with the hopes of having the repairs completed “expeditiously.”

In January 2023, she obtained an assessment and quotes from an excavating company, which said that due to the leak, “the perimeter drain was not directing water away from the foundation slab, so ground saturation was permeating through the carport floor slab and causing the patios, planters, ground to settle around SL7.”

Throughout the following year, there was more back and forth and meetings about repairs.

On January 5, 2024, Casement told the strata manager that her carport floor was wet and the cracks were getting wider and longer.

The tribunal dismissed many of the claims that Casement made against her strata, including damages for psychological harm and medical expenses. However, the tribunal agreed that the strata acted significantly unfairly by not providing her with a report from an engineer, who outlined several recommendations for dealing with the repairs.

The tribunal ordered the strata to pay Casement $1,112.50 within 30 days of the tribunal decision. It also ordered the strata to immediately make temporary repairs to the damage caused to the front patio.

Within 60 days of the decision, the strata was ordered to ensure that the perimeter drain system around SL7 was functioning correctly, that the gut gutter and downspout collection systems were in working order and separate from the below-grade perforated perimeter system, and that an engineer was retained to investigate the water source for the moisture in the carport.

Within 180 days of the decision, the strata was ordered to correct the sloped concrete patios and pavers at the building perimeter next to SL7.