Ihlathi Body Corporate v Naledi Pumane

The applicant, Ihlathi Body Corporate, a sectional title body corporate situated in Parklands, Cape Town, brought an application under sections 38 and 39(1)(e) of the Community Schemes Ombud Service Act 9 of 2011 for payment of arrear levy contributions by the respondent, Naledi Pumane, the registered owner of unit F7 in the scheme. The application was authorised by trustee resolution and lodged on 3 November 2023. The body corporate alleged that the respondent had failed over time to make regular levy payments and that, as at November 2023, the outstanding amount reflected on the statement was R11 533.52, including interest. The respondent did not respond to the dispute notice issued under section 43 of the CSOS Act despite being given opportunities to do so. Conciliation failed and a certificate of non-resolution was issued on 1 March 2024, after which the matter was referred for adjudication on the papers. The applicant sought an order for payment of the full outstanding amount. On examining the supporting documents, the adjudicator found the levy claim generally proved, but held that legal and arrear cost recovery fees of R3 110 charged between November 2022 and October 2023 had not been shown to comply with Prescribed Management Rule 25(4) and (5), and therefore those charges had to be deducted.

• Whether the CSOS had jurisdiction under the CSOS Act to determine a dispute concerning payment of arrear levy contributions in a sectional title scheme
• Whether the applicant body corporate had proved on a balance of probabilities that the respondent owed arrear levy contributions
• Whether the body corporate was entitled to recover the full amount claimed, including interest and legal/arrear cost recovery charges
• Whether legal and arrear cost recovery fees debited to the respondent's account were recoverable absent proof of compliance with Prescribed Management Rule 25(4) and (5)
• Whether a costs order should be made in the adjudication

The application was granted in part. The respondent was ordered to pay arrear levy contributions of R8 423.52 in full on or before 31 May 2024. No order as to costs was made.

A body corporate is entitled under section 39(1)(e) of the CSOS Act, read with the STSMA, to obtain an order compelling a unit owner to pay proved arrear levy contributions where the body corporate establishes the indebtedness on a balance of probabilities. However, legal and arrear cost recovery fees may not be recovered merely because they appear on a statement; they are recoverable only if the body corporate proves that they were imposed in compliance with PMR 25(4) and (5) or otherwise authorised by consent, taxation/agreement, or court/adjudicative order.

The adjudicator observed that non-payment of levies can seriously destabilise a scheme and that levies are the 'lifeblood' of shared living schemes because they fund maintenance, insurance, security and other collective obligations. The adjudicator also commented generally that costs orders are not ordinarily made in section 54 adjudications and are more commonly associated with dismissals under section 53 of the CSOS Act.

The decision is significant for community schemes and sectional title governance because it reaffirms that body corporates may use the CSOS process to recover arrear levies and that owners are expected to pay levies necessary for the functioning of the scheme. At the same time, it underscores that additional legal or arrear recovery charges are not automatically recoverable: a body corporate must prove compliance with the Prescribed Management Rules before such charges may be debited to an owner's account. The case illustrates the evidential scrutiny applied by CSOS adjudicators even where the respondent does not oppose the claim.