Sydney Fire: Surry Hills man says he is being ‘punished’ for being a renter


The building fire that stopped Sydney in its tracks last week has now revealeda difference in the rules applying to renters and owners.

On Thursday a massive blaze broke out on Randle Street in Surry Hills just after 4pm and was later upgraded to a ‘10th alarm’, the most severe type of fire.

Bystanders watched on when the multistorey apartment building became engulfed in flames, with smoke seen from several suburbs away and ash was even falling from the sky.

Tam Campbell has been living next door to the building for over a decade. He rents a studio apartment at 5-7 Randle St and pays $900 a fortnight.

He had only left his apartment minutes before the fire broke out and was stuck watching from the street waiting to see if his building would survive.

Thankfully Mr Campbell’s building came out relatively unscathed but the fire next door caused extensive damage and he still hasn’t been able to move back into his apartment.

There was only a brief window when a police officer was able to take him to take some crucial essentials.

Yet the fire could now cost him thousands.

Mr Campbell is currently on leave from work and is staying at a nearby hotel for $270 a night. The day after the fire when news.com.au first contacted Mr Campbell he was feeling okay as he assumed that the costs would be covered.

He said he understood that tenants could stay in hotels and be reimbursed for reasonable costs.

Mr Campbell’s original understanding of the situation was that the buildings strata would cover the cost of the emergency accommodation.

However, by Monday, Mr Campbell’s situation had changed and he texted again giving me an update.

“Just reaching out as now I’m being told I won’t be able to claim hotel accommodation as I’m a tenant not an owner,” he said.

News.com.au has reached out to the strata for comment but has not received a reply.

He also revealed that he didn’t have any family nearby that he could stay with and he wanted to be near his building in case he got the opportunity to pick up more stuff or move back in.

“If I’m not staying somewhere around the corner I wouldn’t be able to get there,” he explained.

Mr Campbell was informed via a phone call that because he wasn’t someone that owned a unit in the building he wouldn’t be entitled to having someone cover his hotel expenses. Basically, landlords and owners would get support but tenants wouldn’t.

“My understanding is that body corporate are just putting owners up and I just don’t want to be out of pocket,” he explained.

Mr Campbell is also concerned for his fellow renters that are in more dire financial straits.

“One tenant told me he couldn’t even afford a single night at a hotel,” he revealed.

Mr Campbell has said that the real estate agent has told him he will be refunded his fortnightly rent already paid up front.

Mr Campbell has home and contents insurance and hopes that will cover his hotel stay. That is yet to be confirmed.

He has been staying at the hotel since the fire on Thursday. He currently owes $1620 and he has no idea when he’ll be able to return to his home.

In the meantime he has stopped ordering food and is just hoping the strata will change its view.

Read related topics:Sydney



Source link

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *