Who is responsible to replace tiles in the shower recess? The owner doesn’t want 2 different colour tiles in their ensuite and expects us to re-tile the bathroom floor. – Rowan, NSW

Q: About 5 years ago we had a leak in one of the bathrooms in a particular unit, the strata committee had a company come in to replace tiles in the shower recess and replace membrane etc. The building had a stock of tiles so no problem with matching, once the work was complete it was realised the shower floor was pooling water, the owner contacted the Secretary/Caretaker, however, the Secretary/caretaker refused to address the issue even after being asked by committee members to address the problem.

5 years has passed and the Secretary/Caretaker has moved on and we are now trying to sort the problem out only to find we no longer have any matching tiles, however, if this was addressed at the time we had plenty.

So the question is who is responsible, the owner doesn’t want 2 different colour tiles in their ensuite and expects us to re-tile the bathroom floor which I don’t blame them because if the problem was addressed at the time it was realised we would have had matching tiles to rectify the problem.

 

A: It may be worth having a look at any previous renovation by-laws. There may be a by-law that was drafted during the time the tiles were to be replaced for the unit in question.

If no such by-law exists and you are unable to find any supporting documentation around the matter, it may fall on the owners responsibility to replace the tiles since it counts as the owners property and not common property.