Part 18 published on 01/05/07
Owner not responsible for deductible
Before leaving for vacation, the owner turned off the shut-off valve on the pipe below the kitchen sink of the owners’ unit (which all unit owners had been asked to do before leaving on vacation). While the owner was away, a leak emanated from the particular pipe, causing damage to the unit below. The condominium corporation had passed a By-law pursuant to Section 105(3) of the Condominium Act, 1998, which allowed the condominium corporation to add the cost of repairs, up to the deductible on the corporation’s insurance policy, to the owner’s common expenses where there was damage to another unit or common elements caused by an act or omission of the owner.
In this case, the Court found that there had been no “act or omission” on the part of the owner, and accordingly found that the deductible loss should not have been added to the owner’s common expenses (and that the resulting condominium lien therefore should not have been registered).
The Court also offered the opinion that the by-law was valid and therefore would have applied if there had been an act or omission.