Strata council had right to clear items from dead man's foul-smelling townhome: B.C. tribunal ruling
The brother of a deceased B.C. property owner says the building’s strata council was wrong to clear out his brother’s townhome after he died.
Ross Graham, who is the executor of his deceased brother’s estate, filed a complaint with the B.C. Civil Resolutions Tribunal alleging that $40,000 worth of items were removed, without permission, from his brother’s apartment after his death.
But the strata council argued that the smell of the dead man’s decomposing body was seeping into other units and it had no choice but to hire a cleanup crew right away, a position the tribunal ultimately agreed with.
And, the well-reputed cleanup company said nothing left in the apartment had value anyway, because it had absorbed foul odours from the decomposing body.
Graham’s brother died in his home ”sometime before Aug. 9, 2020,” and his body was later found during an RCMP safety check at a neighbour’s request. But in the days after his body was found, the strata council hired a contractor, Genesis Restorations, which executed a “decomposition cleanup.”
“(The surviving brother) Mr. Graham says that Genesis removed and disposed of valuable belongings, including an outboard boat motor, a wine collection, and an iPhone … (and) says the strata was not entitled to have its contractor remove personal property,” reads a Jan. 6 decision from the BCCRT.
Graham also accused the restoration company of stealing items from the unit, which the company’s owner denied. The tribunal ruled that such allegations of fraud were “speculative” and Graham didn’t have adequate evidence.
Graham claimed that instead of clearing out the apartment, strata should have “secured the strata lot and its contents.” As a result, he wanted strata to pay him for a $40,000 devaluation of the estate.
But the strata said the surviving brother’s claim should be dismissed because it had to clear out the apartment due to complaints from neighbours.
A statement from Graham Dick, owner of Genesis, submitted to the tribunal said that the deceased man’s body had been decomposing in the unit for more than two weeks, during the summer, without air conditioning and with the heat on.
According to strata, other owners complained about “contamination and odours” coming from the unit and it “had to take steps to enforce its bylaws against nuisance and hazard.”
It hired Genesis to “purify the air with machines, clean carpets and surfaces, and remove and dispose of flooring and contaminated contents,” reads the ruling.
The strata says the company sorted through the items in the unit to determine which were “non-restorable,” therefore it’s not liable for those actions.
In his job report to strata, Dick said that everything in the apartment would need to be thrown out because it had absorbed odours from the decomposing body.
“Everything had been ‘soaking’ in the increasing odour of decomposition for 3-4 weeks,” it reads.
“As a body decomposes, the fluids evaporate and then redistribute onto all surfaces (like smoke), coating the surfaces of everything and as the temperature rises … molecular absorption…takes place. Plastics and electronics are especially susceptible to this and will continue to off gas odours at warmer temperatures for months or years.”
The civil resolution tribunal ruled in favour of the strata, finding it had taken adequate steps to try and find a next of kin before going ahead with clearing out the apartment, and that it was under a time crunch to take action.
According to Dick, the remediation work “needed to be completed without further delay as the odour was getting stronger and more unbearable day by day” and “there was severe odour saturation into all contents, furniture, paint, and floors,” and “flies and maggots throughout the main floor.”
In her ruling, tribunal member and vice chair Kate Campbell wrote that Graham “has not proven it was unreasonable or negligent for the strata to permit Genesis to dispose of (his brother’s) contents … (nor has he) proved what items were in (the unit) or their monetary value.”
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Potential tornado 'surreal' for residents who witnessed damaging storm in southern Ontario
Witnessing a potential tornado was 'surreal' for residents who caught a glimpse of the damaging storm in southern Ontario on Wednesday night.
Was this the bug that stung you? Wasp sightings revive murder-hornet concerns; no detections confirmed
As temperatures rise out of a mild El Nino winter, Canada's buggy season is already upon us again, and this year, the bugs are looking especially big.
Minister tables bill to extend citizenship rights to children born abroad
Immigration Minister Marc Miller tabled legislation today that is intended to extend citizenship to some children born outside of the country.
WestJet planning new fare category for travellers willing to forgo carry-on bag
WestJet Airlines plans to launch a new cheaper fare category that would be available to travellers willing to fly without a carry-on bag.
'We'll need all hands on deck': Details emerge after deadly boat crash near Kingston, Ont.
Police say they have wrapped up their on-scene investigation into a deadly boat crash in eastern Ontario as details of the incident begin to emerge.
Jennifer Lopez's response to question about Ben Affleck is a reminder of their decades of love in the spotlight
Plenty of people are wondering if Jennifer Lopez and Ben Affleck are having problems in their marriage, but one person had the nerve to ask in a public forum.
U.S. Justice Department says illegal monopoly by Ticketmaster and Live Nation drives up prices for fans
The U.S. Justice Department filed a sweeping antitrust lawsuit against Ticketmaster and parent company Live Nation Entertainment on Thursday, accusing them of running an illegal monopoly over live events in America -- squelching competition and driving up prices for fans.
Adding just 10% ultraprocessed foods to healthy diets may raise risk of cognitive decline, stroke
Eating more ultraprocessed foods is linked to a higher risk of cognitive decline and stroke, even if a person is trying to adhere to a Mediterranean diet, the DASH diet or the MIND diet, a new study found.
'Looking over our shoulders': A killing looms large in a little B.C. town
Something shifted in the pretty little village of Lumby, B.C., after Tatjana Stefanski vanished.