A B.C. man who finds his strata lot’s electrical transformer to be a nuisance has lost most of his $385,000 bid at the Civil Resolution Tribunal.
According to the tribunal’s Nov. 22 decision, John Bondoc and his wife bought the unit in March 2021.
Directly below their unit is an electrical transformer; it’s located in an electrical room in the strata’s parking lot and provides power to 15 units, documents show.
Bondoc began complaining about the noise multiple times. He had problems sleeping, an issue that affected his work. The tribunal decision said he had to quit his job and get counselling. He also had to use a mouthguard to stop grinding his teeth while he slept, tribunal member Nav Shukla heard.
His wife said she can’t fall asleep and has tried earplugs and noise-cancelling machines with little success. Due to the lack of sleep, her body regularly aches, and she is constantly taking painkillers, she said.
Bondoc acknowledged the strata made some attempts to address the noise but said it was slow to act. Steps taken were ineffective, he said.
He sought an order from the tribunal that the strata take immediate action to stop the noise.
Alternatively, he sought $350,000 in damages for the loss of his unit’s property value due to the noise and moving expenses he said he would incur if the strata does not remedy the situation.
He also sought $35,000 in damages for loss of use and enjoyment of his primary bedroom and bathroom, harm to his physical and mental health, and for the negative impact the noise has had on his work performance.
The strata, however, claimed the noise is not a nuisance and that it has taken reasonable steps to address the matter. It said Bondoc is not entitled to damages.
The strata had a company check the equipment. It suggested having it cleaned and installing a new transformer at a cost of $11,530. At one point, Bondoc said he was willing to split the cost of the new equipment with the strata.
Shukla, however, found the transformer to be a common asset and one that should be managed and maintained by the strata.
BAP Acoustics tested the transformer’s noise levels and found there was a “clear audible hum.”
“BAP said that without a substantial amount of masking noise, it would expect these tones to have the potential to be disturbing and annoying,” the decision said.
BAP set out a number of recommendations for modifying the transformer that might help reduce the noise.
The strata sent BAP’s report to Bondoc and noted that any further remediation would have to be paid for by the owners and that it was not required to do anything further.
The Civil Resolution Tribunal found the strata treated Bondoc “in a significantly unfair manner” by not doing anything about the transformer noise after receiving BAP’s report.
Shukla also said the strata’s stance that Bondoc could undertake transformer repairs at his own expense was unjust and burdensome because it shifted the strata’s responsibility onto him.
“Based on the consistent nature of the noise, and since Mr. Bondoc has been dealing with the noise for over 1.5 years now, I find the strata must pay Mr. Bondoc $1,000 in damages for loss of enjoyment of his strata lot,” Shukla said.
