B.C.’s Civil Resolution Tribunal has awarded a Lower Mainland strata $10,000 in compensation for an insurance deductible after a sprinkler pipe burst in an owner's unit.
Tribunal member Alison Wake said in her Nov. 20 decision that Mount Buchanan Lines S.A. Ltd. (MBL) owns the unit in question.
Wake said the repair costs exceeded the strata’s $10,000 insurance deductible and the strata made an insurance claim to repair the damage. The strata sought an order that MBL reimburse it for the deductible but MBL said it was not responsible for the deductible.
Wake said the unit has a ground floor entrance into a small foyer, with stairs leading to a second- and third-floor living area.
“It is undisputed that a sprinkler pipe in the foyer ceiling burst on or around Dec. 22, 2021,” she said.
That burst resulted in a water leak, which caused damage to (the unit) and two other strata lots.
The strata engaged a restoration company to repair the damage.
The strata alleged that the pipe froze due to insufficient heat in the foyer. MBL denied that, saying the pipe system could have been faulty or the pipe could have frozen due to insufficient insulation.
Wake said the question at issue was who was responsible for the pipe.
MBL argued that the fire suppression system was the strata’s responsibility.
However, said Wake, there was no evidence before her that the pipe served any purpose outside that unit and found that the pipe was part of the unit rather than common property.
“Nothing in the bylaws makes the strata responsible for repairing or maintaining pipes that are part of a strata lot,” Wake said. “I find that the bylaws make MBL responsible for the burst sprinkler pipe.”
As such, Wake ordered MBL to pay $10,000 for the deductible, $478.41 in prejudgment interest and $225 in tribunal fees.
