A spate of lift mishaps has prompted an islandwide ramp-up in inspections.

National Development Minister Lawrence Wong announced yesterday that he has asked the Building and Construction Authority (BCA) to intensify its audits of lifts around Singapore, especially those in Housing Board blocks.

“This may cause some disruption to lift operations and inconvenience to residents,” he explained in a post on Facebook.

“I seek your patience and understanding on this matter. We want to be thorough in our checks and cannot compromise on safety.”

The BCA said the checks will pay more attention to lifts in areas where incidents have occurred, before moving on to other places.

There are about 59,000 passenger lifts in Singapore.

According to the BCA, there have been 10 lift incidents since 2013.

The lift problems that have made the news over the past six months (since October) have all taken place in HDB blocks.

Last October, an 85-year-old Jurong resident’s hand was severed by the doors of an HDB lift, although investigations showed that there was nothing wrong with the lift.

Click on thumbnail to view photos. Source: 

Lianhe Wanbao, Shin Min Daily News, The New Paper, Internet screengrabs

In January, a lift in Edgefield Plains was suspended from service after one of its inner doors stayed open while it moved.

On Monday, a 36-year-old maid fell after the lift she was in suddenly shot up 17 floors. It later stalled, trapping her.

The incident, which happened at Block 317 in Ang Mo Kio Street 31, is still being investigated.

Experts told The Straits Times that cases such as that in Ang Mo Kio are rare. The 23-year-old lift in this incident is five years short of the usual replacement age for HDB lifts.

But experts said a lift’s safety depends on regular and proper maintenance, not its age.

Lift engineer Kok Peng Koon, 80, said: “Individual lift parts can still be upgraded. So it is important to check them.”

Mr Wong also said the BCA will complete its review of lift regulations and standards this year. This review, which began in 2014, will include legislative changes.

The BCA did not specify these changes, but said it will conduct public and industry consultations on proposed amendments to maintenance regulations.

“Where needed, new measures to ensure the continued safety of lifts in our buildings will be introduced,” it said.

Since January, the BCA has distributed 140,000 lift safety posters to all lift owners such as town councils and condominium managements.

These illustrated posters instruct users on the dos and don’ts in lifts – such as not jumping in the cabin.

The BCA has also sent out circulars to lift contractors and examiners to remind them to be vigilant in maintaining lifts, and conducted seminars to raise awareness of lift audit findings.

Under lift regulations, all passenger lifts used by the public must be maintained monthly. Such maintenance works usually involve inspecting items such as door sensors, brakes and lift cables, said experts.

MP for Nee Soon GRC Lee Bee Wah welcomed the extra checks by BCA. She said: “It is always good to have an extra pair of eyes. We don’t want people to lose confidence in using their lifts.”

Lift in Ang Mo Kio shot up 17 floors

Click on thumbnail to view photos. Source: 

Lianhe Wanbao, The New Paper

This article was first published on March 12, 2016.
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Faced with a sluggish public resale market, fewer home owners are selling their flats once they become able to do so.

Last year, 388 flats were resold within a year of meeting their five-year Minimum Occupation Period (MOP), the Housing Board told The Straits Times.

This was 6 per cent of the 6,623 newly eligible flats, down from about 11 per cent in 2014.

Experts said market conditions were behind the fall, but offered differing explanations.

Resale prices fell 1.6 per cent last year. A total of 19,306 flats changed hands, up from 2013’s record low of 17,318, but still low compared with preceding decades.

The quiet property market might have cooled housing aspirations, with home owners feeling “no hurry… to upgrade”, said R’ST Research director Ong Kah Seng.

In previous years, when the public resale market was hot, more flats were resold upon becoming eligible. From 2010 to 2012, more than 1,000 such flats were resold each year, representing between 12 per cent and 18 per cent of newly eligible flats.

But after the introduction of cooling measures such as loan curbs, HDB resale prices began to fall in the second half of 2013. That year, only 5.5 per cent of flats were resold within a year of meeting the MOP – comparable with last year.

Why were proportionately fewer newly eligible flats resold in 2013 and last year, compared with 2014?

Unlike 2014, which had steadily falling prices, the other two years were turning points for the market, said OrangeTee research manager Wong Xian Yang. He said: “When the price trend is uncertain, there will be a mismatch in buyer-seller expectations as the market figures out where prices may be heading.

“The gap in expectations between buyers and sellers may have widened during these periods of uncertainty, leading to the lower proportions seen in 2013 and 2015.”

In contrast, the proportion of home owners choosing to sublet their newly eligible flats has remained fairly constant since 2010.

Last year, 259 flats, or 4 per cent of newly eligible flats, were sublet within a year of meeting the MOP.

Compared with resale plans, subletting intentions immediately after the MOP are less affected by market conditions, said experts.

“Most owners of newer flats generally do not favour subletting unless forced by circumstances,” said Mr Ong, adding that such flats are still in a fairly new condition and subletting carries the risk of poor upkeep.

This article was first published on March 12, 2016.
Get a copy of The Straits Times or go to straitstimes.com for more stories.