My daughter has her car parked in her apartment’s underground carpark space where a cupboard has come off the wall and dropped onto her car causing damage to the car and breaking the windscreen. Is this covered by the owners corporation building insurance? – Allan, VIC

Q: My daughter has her car parked in her apartment’s underground carpark space. There is a cupboard above each car space for storage – attached to the wall. The cupboard has come off the wall and dropped onto her car causing damage to the car & breaking the windscreen.

Is this covered by the owners corporation building insurance i.e. replacement of the cupboard/damaged articles from a storage cupboard and car restitution?

 

A: This will depend on a few factors, and may become complicated to concretely locate who is at fault and therefore responsible for covering the cost of damages.

In the Owners Corporation Act (Vic), it is the owners corporation’s responsibility to repair and maintain common property. If failure to maintain and repair common property leads to damage to a lot owner’s personal property, the owners corporation is then responsible for covering the cost of damage, and a claim can be made by the lot owner against the owners corporation.

It may also be helpful for your daughter to talk to either the owners corporation manager for her building or to her committee. It may also be worth talking to her car insurance company for further guidance on the matter.