Bodies corporate given powers to restrict or ban smoking from May [Video]

From May 1, a body corporate will be able to make by-laws banning residents from smoking or vaping on a private balcony following changes to the Body Corporate and Community Management Act 1997 (the Act).

The legislation passed last year, along with amendments that included preventing bodies corporate banning pets, simplifying the process for the towing of vehicles and providing a lower threshold for voting on terminating schemes for economic reasons.

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Of all the amendments, though, allowing bodies corporate to make by-laws that prohibit the use of smoking products on common property, an outdoor area or within the boundaries of a unit’s balcony or courtyard, may have the greatest impact.

Smoking products includes vapes.

The legislation considers that regularly exposing a person in another lot or on common property to second-hand smoke is a nuisance, a hazard and an unreasonable …