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Dealing with By–Law Breaches – Noise Complaints

Alleged violations of acceptable noise levels are a common disagreement amongst residents living within a strata property.

There are regulations in place for acceptable levels of domestic noise. Generally each Council has their own noise policies. Let’s take Willoughby Council as an example.

Willoughby Council has time restrictions on various domestic noise sources. They are:

Articles may be used outside these hours if they are not audible to other residents. Also even within these hours, if the noise source causes offense to another resident, then the user may be breach of a noise violation.
So what do you do if you believe your neighbour is in breach of noise restrictions? At The Strata Agency we advocate the following course of action.

1. The first step is always to try and resolve the issue yourself. We recommend casually and calmly discussing the issue with your neighbour in an attempt to find an amiable solution for all. Your neighbours may be unaware at how sound can travel and will be only too happy to rectify the situation.
    
2. If the offense is occurring at night, possibly for a party with louder-than-acceptable music, you are entitled to call the police who have the power to issue a Noise Abatement Direction if they are satisfied the music is obtrusive and offensive. Once issued, the abatement direction must be obeyed immediately and the offender cannot breach the direction for the following 28 days.
    
3. If the friendly approach fails and your neighbour continues with the noise violations, the next step is to take your complaint to the Executive Committee for your building. We recommend writing a letter to the Executive Committee outlining the issue. The Executive Committee then, should they choose to, have the option of instructing The Strata Agency to act on the situation.

   The Strata Agency can take a number of steps to have the offending individual comply, however we must remain impartial for all proceedings. Upon instruction, the first step we would take is forwarding a copy of the complaint to the alleged offender, citing the breach of noise regulations. We would also send a copy to the owner or agent if it’s a rental property. The offender is entitled to either issue a right of reply if they wish to deny wrong-doing or formally apologise for the offense.

4. If the above steps fails to resolve the issue, as Strata Managers, we can issue a Section 45 Notice to Comply (providing that the necessary motions are passed by the Committee), which can then be enforced via a penalty fine application at the Consumers Traders and Tenancy Tribunal.
    
5. If these approaches fail, formal action can follow by seeking an order from the Consumers Traders and Tenancy Tribunal (CTTT), a Tribunal established to resolve disputes between tenants, landlords, traders and consumers in a timely and effective manner.

If taking formal action we advise that you should have fully documented evidence of the offense including specific times, date, a police event number, photographic evidence and statutory declarations from witnesses. 

If you have any further questions about noise violations contact your Strata Manager but please be aware that The Strata Agency must remain neutral with all alleged legal violations.