Strata councils may resort to fining an owner in order to deter what they perceive to be an owner’s or a tenant’s bylaw breach. They may also charge back the owner the costs of remedying a contravention of the bylaws.
If an owner refuses to pay a fine within twenty-one (21) days of a demand by the strata council or the property management company, the strata corporation may decide to take legal action either in Small Claims Court or at the Civil Resolution Tribunal to collect the fine or the “charge-back”.
However, there are a number of important steps that a strata corporation has to follow before creating a legally enforceable fine. Furthermore, if the owner has contested the fine or the charge-back, the strata corporation will have to prove in court that the infraction took place.