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Topic
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An owner consistently parks his vehicle on the common property driveway, leaving a narrow passage for other cars to get by. At the moment there is no by-law giving him special permission to park there.
in the event of a scape or minor bingle eventuating from a vehicle trying to get past the illegally parked car, who is responsible for repairs :
The driver in the moving car, or
The owner parked illegally, or
The Owners Corporation for failing to enforce the existing by-law?
Does the illegally parked owner have a case, as he might if parked on the street, that because his car was stationary, the moving car is in the wrong ?
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Replies
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In the event of a bingle both parties would need to get independent legal advice as this would be a civil matter. The strata laws don’t go into liability if such an event occurs. If you believe that the OC would be responsible because it failed to enforce the by laws, this would still be civil legal action you would need to take against the OC, as such compensation would be outside the scope of the SSMA 1996.
Common sense says that if you are driving a car and collide with a stationary vehicle, regardless of whether it is parked legally or not, you would be responsible. If there is insufficient room, you have the option of not trying to go past it.
(Perhaps an “untraceable” accident to the offending vehicle would deter the offender.)
@lefty said:
An owner consistently parks his vehicle on the common property driveway, leaving a narrow passage for other cars to get by. At the moment there is no by-law giving him special permission to park there.Is there a by-law saying he can’t park there? If not, there should be. He is a parking thief, stealing common property to save paying for a parking space.
One other thought, a while ago our building had a repeat offender who parked his motorbike in a space right in front of a fire hose (rahter than hire s bike space from the building). We put a notice on his car saying the fire department had told us that if they inspected and found the bike there, thery would move it by whatever means necessary. It was a lie, but it worked.
How about informing this parking thief that his vehicle is blocking access that may be required in the event of a fire and you have contacted the fire department with a view to having the vehicle towed.
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.
@Boronia said:
Common sense says that if you are driving a car and collide with a stationary vehicle, regardless of whether it is parked legally or not, you would be responsible.I looked into this and I have to agree with Boronia the driver of the moving vehicle would be totally liable for any damage even if their was a bylaw trying to transfer the responsibility because the bylaw would conflict with the road traffic act.
I don’t know why we are even discussing this. Get the owner to move the damned car and then all the legal ifs and buts are irrelevant.
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.
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