Vero Insurance Limited v The Owners of Strata Plan No. 69352 [2010] NSWDC 54

Vero Insurance Limited v The Owners of Strata Plan No. 69352 [2010] NSWDC 54

The plaintiff insurer failed to demonstrate that the Tribunal's decision raised a question with respect to a matter of law. On the evidence before the Tribunal, which did not establish 201 separate policies rather than a single policy with multiple certificates, it was open as a factual matter to find that the owners corporation made one claim under one policy and that only one $500 excess was payable. The statutory scheme did not compel the conclusion that there were 201 policies or 201 claims, so the appeal under s 67(1) of the Consumer, Trader and Tenancy Tribunal Act 2001 failed.

Jurisdiction
Australia
Judgment Date
29 April 2010
Procedural Posture
Civil Statutory Appeal Under S 67(1) of the Consumer, Trader and Tenancy Tribunal Act 2001 From a Decision of the Consumer, Trader and Tenancy Tribunal Home Building Division / Appeal From Tribunal Determination of Preliminary Question Concerning Insurance Excess
Outcome
The plaintiff's appeal was dismissed and the proceedings were remitted to the Consumer, Trader and Tenancy Tribunal for further orders consistent with the findings.
Legal Topics
['statutory Appeal From Consumer, Trader and Tenancy Tribunal' 'question With Respect to a Matter of Law' 'construction of Statutory Home Warranty Insurance Policy' 'insurance Excess for Common Property Defects' 'single Claim or Multiple Claims Under Strata Insurance Arrangements']
['administrative Law' 'insurance Law' 'home Building' 'strata Schemes'] ['statutory Appeal From Consumer, Trader and Tenancy Tribunal' 'question With Respect to a Matter of Law' 'construction of Statutory Home Warranty Insurance Policy' 'insurance Excess for Common Property Defects' 'single Claim or Multiple Claims Under Strata Insurance Arrangements']

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Procedural Posture

Civil Statutory Appeal Under S 67(1) of the Consumer, Trader and Tenancy Tribunal Act 2001 From a Decision of the Consumer, Trader and Tenancy Tribunal Home Building Division / Appeal From Tribunal Determination of Preliminary Question Concerning Insurance Excess

Legal Issues

  1. 1 ['Whether the appeal from the Tribunal involved a decision on a question with respect to a matter of law within s 67(1) of the Consumer, Trader and Tenancy Tribunal Act 2001.' "Whether the Tribunal erred by failing to determine that the owners corporation's claim was made on 201 individual statutory policies rather than on a single policy." "Whether the excess payable for the owners corporation's insurance claim concerning common property defects was $500 or $100,500."]

Ratio Decidendi

The plaintiff insurer failed to demonstrate that the Tribunal's decision raised a question with respect to a matter of law. On the evidence before the Tribunal, which did not establish 201 separate policies rather than a single policy with multiple certificates, it was open as a factual matter to find that the owners corporation made one claim under one policy and that only one $500 excess was payable. The statutory scheme did not compel the conclusion that there were 201 policies or 201 claims, so the appeal under s 67(1) of the Consumer, Trader and Tenancy Tribunal Act 2001 failed.

Court Disposition

The plaintiff's appeal was dismissed and the proceedings were remitted to the Consumer, Trader and Tenancy Tribunal for further orders consistent with the findings.

Orders

  • ["The plaintiff's appeal is dismissed." "The plaintiff is to pay the defendant's costs of the appeal on the ordinary basis, unless otherwise ordered." 'The proceedings are remitted to the Consumer, Trader and Tenancy Tribunal to make further orders, consistent with these findings, to finally determine the...