Standard Units – A Refresher

Standard unit descriptions serve two purposes:

1. The standard unit description identifies the parts of the units (namely the standard unit features) which must be insured by the condominium corporation on behalf of the owners.
2. In those relatively few cases where the condominium corporation is obligated to repair the units, the standard unit description also identifies the parts of the units (again, the standard unit features) that must be repaired by the corporation.

[Unit improvements – ie. all unit features that are not part of the standard unit – must be insured (if desired or required) by the owner, and always must be repaired by the owner.]

In most condominium corporations, the Declaration says that the owners must repair their units. So in other words, in most cases Item 2 above does not apply.

In the most common situation – where Item 1 applies – the standard unit description does not change the repair responsibility. It only defines the insurance responsibility.

Let’s take a common example: An owner is obligated to repair the unit, and the unit is damaged by water. If the water damage applies to the standard unit, this then raises the following question: Does the corporation’s insurance provide coverage for the damage? [As described above, the corporation’s insurance also belongs to the owners.] So again, the question is: Was the damage due to a peril that is insured by the corporation (per Section 99 of the Condominium Act)? [Water damage is very often an insured peril.] If so, this means that the owner has the benefit of the corporation’s insurance coverage in order to fulfill the owner’s repair obligation.

That said, there are some additional “wrinkles”:

1. The corporation’s insurance of course does not provide coverage for any damage falling within the policy deductible. Section 105 of the Condominium Act says that the corporation is responsible to pay for any such “deductible loss”, unless (i) the damage (to the owner’s standard unit) was caused by an act or omission of the owner or an occupant of the unit, or (ii) the owner is obligated to pay the deductible loss under the terms of an insurance deductibles by-law passed by the corporation.
2. If the corporation decides not to make an insurance claim, the owner is entitled to have the corporation pay whatever amount the insurer would pay (if a claim were made).
3. In cases of “insured damage” under the corporation’s policy, the insurer / the corporation have the right (if they wish) to attend to the required repairs on behalf of the owner (because the insurer and/or the corporation are ultimately responsible for the cost of insured repairs). [This is the reason that condominium corporations and/or insurers typically take control of insured repairs.]

But here’s the key point: The repair responsibility is determined by the Condominium Act and by the Declaration. In most cases, the purpose of the standard unit description is to define the corporation’s insurance responsibility.

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