time limits for building defects claims to be lodged

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  • 17/02/2013 at 8:18 am #8698
    Prufrock

      In Jimmy T’s article in the SMH on 26 November 2012, he said that there were “six years to uncover structural defects …and claims have to be made within six months of the problem being discovered”. I can find sources for this six-year rule but not for the 6-month rule. The only thing I can see about 6 months is that if a defect is discovered in the last 6 months of the 6 year period, then you have another 6 months in which to claim. But that’s not what Jimmy said.

       

      Our building got its occupancy certificate in August 2009 so it seems to me that we have more than 2 years within which to lodge any claim. We have just commissioned a building inspection which has identified 100s of defects, some of them major. Out strata managers are urging us to post haste engage a lawyer to advise whether or not we have a viable claim, saying we only have a short time to lodge a claim – but they can’t tell me where it is said that we need to lodge a claim within a limited time after becoming aware of the defects. I have searched for some verification of Jimmy’s statement about these 6 months but can’t find any.

      Can anyone tell me where it is written?

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    • 18/02/2013 at 9:02 am #17873
      Jimmy-T
      Keymaster

        You’ll find the relevant statement here – it’s the second paragraph under the Headline October 2011 Changes: 

        In general, home owners must lodge a claim for defective or incomplete building work within the insured period. If the work is defective, the home owner must lodge the claim within 6 months of becoming aware of the problem.

        In your case, that would mean lodging a claim within six months of the inspection report being delivered. This is a NSW regulation.

        JimmyT

        The opinions offered in these Forum posts and replies are not intended to be taken as legal advice. Readers with serious issues should consult experienced strata lawyers.
        18/02/2013 at 6:16 pm #17877
        Prufrock

          Thanks, Jimmy, but I have searched high and low for proof of such a regulation without success! Where is it written? What you have directed me to, which is not the regulation per se, seems to be dealing exclusively with home warranty insurance and our situation – which I should have made clear before – is that of a 4-storey building not covered by insurance. I can’t find anything to say that we need to lodge a claim within 6 months of becoming aware of the defects. With more than 2 years of the 6-year period yet to run, I would have thought we had plenty of time, no?

          19/02/2013 at 12:23 am #17878
          Jimmy-T
          Keymaster

            OK, so now you are saying your building is not covered by insurance and therefore not subject to the six-month limit.

            That’s fine (if it is, in fact the case)  but if your strata manager is urging you to make your claim as soon as possible, I would be guided by them.  Why would you wait to lodge a claim when you know what the problems are?  The longer you wait, the more likely the developer is to a) say it’s wear and tear and b) conveniently go bust.

            The opinions offered in these Forum posts and replies are not intended to be taken as legal advice. Readers with serious issues should consult experienced strata lawyers.
            19/02/2013 at 5:56 pm #17886
            Prufrock

              Thanks again, Jimmy. I didn’t say in the first place that there was home warranty insurance but, obviously, it would have been clearer if I’d said that in the first place.

              It’s not that I think we have time to be idle. There are a number of reasons why we want to take at least a few weeks to decide what to do next including having a complex building defects report to digest, a lack of clarity as to whether all the defects identified are “structural” as per the definition in the relevant legislation, tension within the EC as to the best way forward, lack of trust that the strata manager knows what she’s talking about (she can’t point us to anywhere where it says there are time limits other than the 6-year limit yet she is saying vote to engage a lawyer this week, today if possible!). I have simply been trying to establish the facts about time limits.

              The inference of your response is: no insurance, no 6-month time limit. Your SMH article wasn’t clear about that. I’m not sure why regarding this issue there is so much focus om home warranty insurance and claims under that when probably most new blocks of units are 4-storey plus where that doesn’t apply (the law is an ass!).

              I fear your prediction about the builder conveniently going bust may come to fruition.

              Regards and thanks again, Prufrock

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