There's a Snake in the driveway, what do I do?
With the weather starting to warm up this is the time of the year that we start seeing snakes active in residential areas and hear from clients within bodies corporate that have snakes sunning themselves on the common driveways.
If there is a snake on your property the best course of action is to:
- Call a local snake catcher
- Keep an eye on the snake and where it is going if it heads for bushes
- Keep children and pets away from the area until safe
- Advise your body corporate manager once the matter has been resolved
It is very important to know where the snake is and keep an eye on it as it cannot be removed from the property if it cannot be found but you may still be charged a callout fee for the snake catchers attendance.
This is a safety issue and the liability for the cost associated with the snake removal service is not mentioned within either the strata or community titles act. Irrespective of who pays the cost there is a duty of care toward other residents within the area that the snake be removed.
Our approach is that irrespective of whether the snake is in your unit subsidiary or the common area that it is best for the corporation to meet the cost of the expenditure which can be handled by sending the invoice through to your manager or raising the matter for a vote and decision at the next meeting of the owners. We have seen previously that removing the burden of cost makes owners more inclined to take necessary actions to ensure that properties are safe for all.
If you have had a snake in your yard it is important to remove all loose ground cover in the form of rubbish, sheets of metal, logs and rocks to remove places for a snake to hide as the experts tell us that snakes that do not find suitable accommodation will move on to other areas.
It is also important to remove vegetation from along fencelines and house walls as snakes tend to hide in these areas and move along buildings. it is also important to cooperate with your immediate neighbours to make their fencelines and gardens equally unfriendly for snakes to keep them away from your family and property.
We hope that you find this useful. If you have any Strata, Community or other property related queries please call our office on 8350 5699.
