A Vancouver homeowner whose unit had a leak in a wine cooler won’t be getting any cash back from her strata, B.C.’s Civil Resolution Tribunal has ruled.
Fei Ying Zhang took her strata to the tribunal after it charged her $2,575 for an invoice from a contractor hired to look into the leak.
In June 2022, water leaked in Zhang’s strata lot, tribunal member Micah Carmody said in a Dec. 18 decision.
Carmody said the contractors determined the leak came from a wine cooler.
Zhang said she should not have to pay the chargeback for various reasons; primarily, she said, because the contractors did unnecessary work because they failed to realize the leak came from the cooler.
The strata said the complaint should be dismissed, its contractors followed industry standards and Zhang is required to pay the chargeback to her strata account.
Zhang was not living in the unit June 4, 2022, when her property manager, Coloumb Wang, discovered water pooling on the living room floor.
Wang mopped the water up, but a small amount of water continued to seep out from the kitchen island toward the living room.
Wang informed Zhang about the leak and called the strata emergency line. The strata manager called a contractor which sent a plumber the same day.
Carmody said they checked the kitchen sink, cabinet and dishwasher.
“They thought the leak might have come from heating or cooling pipes under the floor, so they turned the water off,” Carmody said.
Based on the plumber’s findings, the strata manager contacted a restoration service which set up drying equipment.
On June 8, a different plumbing contractor employee arrived and turned on the water to check for leaks.
“There was no leak, but using a thermal imaging camera and moisture meter, (the plumber) traced the water back to the kitchen island and eventually the wine cooler,” the tribunal stated.
The cooler door had been left open and the unit had iced up. Once the electricity was turned off, the ice melted, and water flowed to the living room.
Electricity was off
Zhang did not dispute that the electricity in the unit was shut off when the previous owner’s BC Hydro account closed, and she agrees that the leak came from the wine cooler.
Zhang claimed once it was established the leak came from the cooler, she should have had the option to deal with it privately where she could have negotiated a price.
“There is no evidence that the rates are not industry standard rates,” Carmody said. “I find the strata acted reasonably by paying the invoice.”
Carmody said Zhang’s issue is with the strata contractor’s process to trace and remediate the leak.
The tribunal said the strata’s bylaws require owners to repair and maintain their strata lots and require the strata to repair and maintain common property and the building’s structure, such as floor joists and wall framing.
Carmody said the strata’s duty was engaged once it was made aware of the leak, because the leak’s source and extent were both unknown.
“It is not necessary for the strata to show that Mrs. Zhang was negligent or did anything to cause the leak,” Carmody said. “It is enough that the leak originated in her strata lot for the strata to be able to charge back the related expenses, so long as they fall under ‘maintenance, repair or replacement.’”
Carmody said the strata acted reasonably given the leak was active when Wang called the emergency line and that there was potential to cause structural damage below the floor.
“I find the strata had authority for the emergency repair chargeback,” Carmody said in dismissing the claim.
