Stratas can't just spend the money in the contingency fund willy-nilly. There has to be approval from the majority of the owners. Fortunately we anticipated the difficulty with obtaining quick access to funds in the event of an unexpected situation and set aside $x,000 for emergency repairs. This separate fund didn't require a vote from the owners to access.
Sure enough, our garage door opener kicked the bucket (4 years sooner than predicted by our depreciation report) and we had some significant sewage blockages that needed cleaning because previous councils hadn't bothered to do the required routine cleaning.
Similar to the roof story I just posted, we still have a couple of owners crying about us spending too much money on these (necessary) repairs. Would they have coughed up the dough if we were relying on special assessments? Would they have cared if the sinks backed up and caused damage to suites?
Sure, as an owner I'd rather save the money up myself and not trust it to the council. As a council member I see the need for quick access to funds for large repairs.
The depreciation report helps owners to plan for major repairs, but it doesn't force them to save.