This article discusses whether a resident with a disability can use the visitor accessible parking space in a strata scheme.
Question: Can a resident with a disability use the visitors’ accessible parking space if this is the only accessible spot in the strata scheme?
I live in a community titles scheme in Queensland and use a wheelchair. Our complex has a small visitors’ car park with one accessible parking space. I have a valid disability permit, but the body corporate manager told me I can’t park there because it’s for visitors only. The sign doesn’t clearly say it’s for visitors, and there are no accessible parking spaces allocated for residents in our building. Should the body corporate provide an accessible parking space for residents, or at least allow me to use the visitors’ space when it’s vacant?
Answer: Check to see what the development approval for the building says.
I think the starting point would be to see what the development approval for the building said with respect to providing disabled parking. That may provide some guidance. From there, it comes back to a mix of statutory provisions regarding disabled access, who is considered a visitor, and what other parking options may be available. This is definitely one for legal advice because there is no black and white answer.
Frank Higginson Redchip Strata Law E: FrankH@redchip.com.au P: 07 3193 0500
This post appears in the November 2025 edition of The QLD Strata Magazine.
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Read next:- QLD: Q&A The First rule of Visitor Parking in Apartments – umm, it’s for visitors!
- QLD: Q&A Do you need a disability parking permit to use the disabled parking?
- QLD: How To Manage Parking Dilemmas At Your Complex
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