The duties of body corporate trustees and HOA directors reached the next level of complexity when “asbestos management” was effectively added to their compliance checklist. The Asbestos Abatement Regulations 2020, issued in terms of the Occupational Health and Safety Act (Act 85 of 1993), came into effect on 9 May 2022.

Being a trustee of a body corporate is often a thankless task, but also a position that is seldom occupied by someone deemed to be adequately qualified to carry such tremendous responsibility. Trustees have a fiduciary duty to administer the body corporate’s financials on behalf of its members.

There has been much discussion around disclaimer notices in community schemes, mainly concerning the correct wording thereof. However, the effectiveness of a disclaimer is also determined by other factors which are often neglected. The disclaimer must be worded in plain and concise language for ease of reading and understanding.

Are you aware that body corporate trustees can be held personally liable for the shortfall in insurance in the case of underinsurance, as a result of an erroneous valuation? But how can this occur if the body corporate has trustee liability cover in place?

What owners often do not realise is that all structural additions and extensions have to be approved, first by the body corporate (STSM Reg 30), and then by the municipality. Following construction, the alteration must then be verified by a land surveyor and approved by the Surveyor-General to make the amendments to the sectional plan official.