Strata unit owner ordered to pay $25,000 deductible after water leak

A strata (condo) unit owner in British Columbia has been ordered to pay their strata corporation’s $25,000 insurance deductible after being found responsible for a water leak that damaged other units and the strata’s common property. 

Civil Resolution Tribunal vice chair Eric Regeher found that the strata lot owner’s conduct was negligent and fell below a reasonable standard of care. Ho Sun Choi was ordered to pay a $25,000 deductible, a $718.20 plumber’s invoice as well as tribunal fees and interest. 

The incident that prompted the penalty occurred on Aug. 9, 2021. According to a report from Mega Hydronics Inc., its plumber arrived at the strata just before 3 a.m. to respond to a water leak in the unit below Choi’s 10th-floor unit. The report said the fill valve from Choi’s toilet had been replaced, and the overflow hose had not been attached.  

“As a result, the toilet was spraying water to the backside of the toilet and onto the wall behind the toilet,” Regehr writes in his May 10 decision, The Owners, Strata Plan BCS 2759 v. Choi.  

The strata corporation argued Choi caused the leak by failing to properly maintain a toilet. But Choi denied liability, saying they were unaware of any issue with the toilet because they had very recently bought the strata lot. 

“The respondent [Choi] provided no evidence about what happened,” Regehr writes. “Their dispute response includes a blanket denial of the strata’s allegations but does not say anything about the night of the leak. 

“The only substantive thing the respondent says is that they did not know there was anything wrong with the strata lot’s ‘fixtures’ because they had recently purchased it,” the decision reads. “However, the respondent had owned the strata lot for almost two months by the time of the leak, which I find is enough time to learn whether a toilet was functioning properly or not.” 

Higher standard 

Strata Bylaw 7.4 says that an owner must indemnify the strata for any repair expenses caused by an “act, omission, negligence or carelessness” of anyone using the strata lot to the extent the strata’s insurance does not cover the expenses. Bylaw 7.4 goes on to say that it applies to the strata’s insurance deductible. 

Section 158(2) of the Strata Property Act says a strata corporation can sue an owner to recover a deductible if the owner is ‘responsible’ for the damage. However, the strata concedes the bylaw means it must prove the respondent negligently caused the damage to recover the deductible.  

“This is because the strata chose to impose a higher standard than ‘responsibility’ by using the words ‘act, omission, negligence or carelessness,’” Regehr writes. “The negligence standard also applies to the strata’s claim for the plumber’s invoice, which was a repair expense.” 

In this case, the negligence standard was met, Regehr finds. Essentially, the leak occurred because somebody had improperly installed the toilet’s fill valve.  

“Was it the respondent?” Regehr asks. “There is no way to know, and I find it does not matter.” 

The tribunal has established the standard of care as essentially that strata lot occupants must monitor a toilet to ensure it empties and refills properly after flushing. 

“Mega Hydronics’ report indicates that water was spraying against the wall behind the toilet,” Regehr writes. “I find that with reasonable diligence, the respondent would have noticed this after using the toilet and shut off the water, preventing the flood. 

“In short, I find that the respondent’s conduct fell below the standard of care and caused the flood. This means the respondent was negligent.” 

Feature image by iStock.com/urfinguss