The Star : 13 November 2006

THE problems between condominium management companies and residents have been long ongoing. 

Last year alone, the National Consumer Complaints Centre received 1,097 complaints in relation to this. 

The disputes between both parties normally end in a deadlock. 

The residents when questioned on their refusal to pay maintenance fees would claim that the management company had failed to provide satisfactory service. 

When the management corporation is questioned on the unsatisfactory service, the common answer would be that the residents are not paying the monthly dues.  

Normally the management company would emerge victorious as they have the strongest weapon at their disposal, which is the “act of harassment”.  

All sort of tactics are used to force the residents to pay, the most powerful being the disconnection of water supply.  

Who gives these people the right to disconnect the water supply?  

The Strata Titles Act 1985 clearly provides that a management corporation can sue to recover maintenance dues and this should be the path which they should take, but they reason that the court process would take too long. 

It is about time that state water corporations took over the water supply of these premises and send the bill directly to residents, the same way that Tenaga Nasional Berhad does, instead of allowing unscrupulous managements to use it as a tool to recover dues.  

Residents who feel that they are unfairly charged or harassed should lodge complaints with the Tribunal for Consumer Claims and the Human Right Commission.  

DARSHAN SINGH,
Director,
National Consumer Complaints Centre,
Selangor.