ABC investigation: Netstrata “charging excessive fees and taking kickbacks”

An ABC News investigation has allegedly uncovered serious abuses by a high-profile strata management firm.

The report released today says Netstrata used its insurance business to charge apartment owners brokerage fees three times the typical rate. The investigation also accuses the firm of taking kickbacks from contractors used to service more than one thousand buildings and 35,000 apartments across NSW.

Netstrata is a sponsor of Jubilee Stadium, home of the St George Illawarra Dragons. The managing director is Stephen Brell, NSW president of the Strata Community Association (SCA).

In an interview with the ABC, Brell said some of his firm’s practices, identified by the broadcaster, have "made me feel really awkward".

The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) and the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) are currently considering whether to investigate the strata industry.

In February, the Australian Consumers Insurance Lobby (ACIL) called on the regulators to investigate what it described as a “systemic pattern” of misconduct by strata managers in how they appoint insurance brokers. The lobby group said it has reported 146 cases of alleged misconduct.

Insurance Business has reached out to both the ACIL and the SCA’s national body for comment.