Later, when Drew asked for an update, the bank told him the property had sold and settlement had already taken place. The sale did not include chattels – which included his tools and equipment. The bank advised Drew that he would have to contact the new owner to retrieve those items. His attempts to recover them were unsuccessful and resulted in him being trespassed from the property.

Drew complained that the bank failed to tell him about the sale of the property in advance of settlement and asked that the bank compensate him for the value of his tools and equipment, which he estimated were worth about $90,000. The bank accepted that the sale excluded the chattels, but said it had no obligation to tell Drew about the sale or settlement date.

Our investigation

Drew remained the owner of the property until settlement, and we found that the bank should have told him that the property had sold and when it would settle, in advance of settlement. If it had done so, Drew would have had the opportunity to remove his tools, equipment and other chattels before the new owner took possession.

The bank was not responsible for the new owners’ failure to allow Drew to retrieve the chattels.  However, the bank was responsible for the stress and inconvenience that Drew suffered trying to retrieve the chattels from the new owners, who were not co-operating. That stress and inconvenience would have been avoided had the bank advised him about the sale and settlement date. 

Outcome

We upheld the complaint and recommended that the bank pay Drew $8,000. Drew accepted this.