By The Paddocks Club Team

Below are examples of two questions on the Paddocks Club discussion forum. We want to show you what is available to our Community members!

Responsibility for excess payment for broken window

Member’s question:

Good day

We would just like to get clearance.

Should the units windows be broken, by big rocks, is it 50% owner and 50% Body Corporate for payments.

We can claim from insurance, is it the owners responsibility to pay the excess or the Body Corporate?

Thank you

Carryn’s answer:

The body corporate insurance will pay for the repair of the window. In terms of PMR 29(4) The owner is responsible for the excess payment in respect of his or her section. The window is half common property and half part of the section. Therefore the owner must pay 50% of the excess amount.

Can a letter of agreement change maintenance responsibilities?

Member’s question:

The previous owner of the unit got permission from the Body Corporate to remove the asbestos roof and have a sliding door fitted.

The owner was liable for the door. The property was then sold and the new owner was never informed of this agreement.

Now there is a leak at the bottom of the sliding door on the outside, and the owner feels it is the body Corporates responsibility.

We have taken over this body corporate, we have no minute books, and nothing minuted between owners.

Many Thanks

Anton’s answer:

The issue is not who did what when but the legal nature of the sliding door.

If the sliding door is in a wall that is the boundary of the section and it leads to unregulated common property, the owner and body corporate share the maintenance cost because the median line passes through the middle of the door.

If the door leads to an exclusive use area, the body corporate must do the maintenance but recover the whole of the cost from the owner.

If the door is in a wall that is inside the section, the owner must do the maintenance and pay for it.


Article reference: Paddocks Press: Volume 10, Issue 3, Page 6.

Professor Graham Paddock, Anton Kelly and Carryn Durham are available to answer questions on the Paddocks Club discussion forum for Community members. Get all your questions answered by joining Paddocks Club.

This article is published under the Creative Commons Attribution license.

Back to Paddocks Press – April 2015 Edition.