Need help… strata council members making false expense claims
Hello everyone,
Location: Richmond, BC, Canada
I would greatly appreciate any advice or guidance.
I live in a condo building in Richmond, BC. About a year ago, I discovered that several members of the strata council appear to be working together to falsify accounts.
Very few residents attend the AGM in our building, so the council has consisted of the same group of individuals for the past few years.
They would directly hire external companies under various pretexts, or even carry out maintenance and repair work themselves on common property, and then submit invoices to the strata management company for reimbursement.
For example, if the actual cost is $200, they claimed $800. I do have some limited direct evidence of this.
The strata management manager seems to process these claims without question.
In most cases, council members provide handwritten receipts with no company name, address, or contact information. I reasonably suspect these receipts are fabricated.
After reviewing the financial statements, I found that this issue occur on a monthly basis and has been ongoing for couple of years already.
As I am not very familiar with strata laws and regulations, I would like to ask:
- if there are any government authorities or regulatory bodies in British Columbia that can file a claim, and step in to investigate this situation.
- What steps can I take to stop this behavior?
Any advice would be sincerely appreciated. Thank you very much.