We could've been killed, says woman after false ceiling collapses onto her bed in Queenstown flat

A woman was stunned when she returned home yesterday (June 8) and discovered that the false ceiling of her newly renovated master bedroom had collapsed on her bed.

This happened at around 6.30pm, in her four-room flat along Dawson Road, Shin Min Daily News reported.

It was a lucky escape for Wendy Liu who had taken her three children – aged eight, two and one – to the void deck during the time of the incident.

The 40-year-old shared with the Chinese evening daily that upon receiving a message from her maid, she rushed home only to find that false ceiling had nearly hit the baby's crib in her bedroom.

"I was stunned. If the kids and I were playing with our mobile phones and tablets on the bed like we usually do, we could have been killed," she said.

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Liu and her family have been living in the flat for five years. After finding a contractor on Facebook, she spent $5,000 on renovation works in January to remove part of the bedroom wall and install a false ceiling.

She insisted that the incident was caused by the "irresponsible" contractor, saying that she believed that four small nails used were inadequate to support the weight of the false ceiling.

Following the incident, the renovation company provided her family with temporary accommodation at a hotel, and promised to fix the damage in her bedroom, Liu said.

She also reported the incident to the police and Tanjong Pagar Town Council, adding: "We haven't talked about it... but I'll definitely ask for compensation.

Responding to Today's queries, Ranamb Masud from renovation company SR Tech Engineering shared that he has reached out to Liu and her family.

This is the first time such an accident had occured, the operation manager said.

Adding that his company intends to refund double the amount that was paid for the false ceiling, Ranamb said: "What we can do is do our best to solve this. We got accommodation for the family of the client... and we are going to see how we can fix their house."

But Liu told Shin Min that she's not satisfied with the $1,600 that was offered as compensation.

"I hope the public will be vigilant when looking for someone to renovate your home," she said.

AsiaOne has reached out to SR Tech Engineering for comment. 

What can homeowners do to ensure peace of mind while their homes are under renovation? 

Speaking to AsiaOne last November, Dawn Tan from interior design firm Goodman Interior gave the following advice:

• Bind the contractor to a contract before renovation works are carried out, instead of relying on oral promises
• To prevent being misled, homeowners should also read the terms and conditions thoroughly
• To settle disputes with contractors, homeowners can turn to mediation bodies or organisations such as the Consumers Association of Singapore

chingshijie@asiaone.com