If your client has experienced or is experiencing family violence or personal violence in their rental, there are protections under the rental laws to minimise victim-survivors being left with costs relating to that violence, like costs to repair damage or unpaid rent. The options available for your client will depend on whether they plan to stay at the property, or if they plan to leave or have already left.
Tenancy law contains options for renters who experience both family violence or personal violence as defined below.
Family violence is a behaviour by a partner, caregiver, family member or guardian that is:
Personal violence can be carried out by a non-family member and means the following:
Generally, everyone on the rental agreement is equally responsible for paying the rent, even if they are no longer living in the property.
If a renter falls behind in rent, they can offer a payment plan to their rental provider to catch up on the rent. Renters can use Dear Landlord to draft a payment plan that they can send to their rental provider.
Use Dear Landlord to draft a payment plan.
If a renter is 14 days or more behind in rent, their rental provider can start the eviction process. This means they can give the renter a notice to vacate.
A notice to vacate is the first step in the eviction process and does not mean the renter has to move out. You can read more about the eviction process. If your client has received a notice to vacate, we recommend supporting them to access legal help
If a person using violence damaged your client’s home, your client must notify the rental provider or real estate agent.
If the damage was caused by family violence or personal violence, your client might be protected under the law from the costs of repairing the damage. As a priority, your client should get legal help to understand their options and obligations where a person using violence has caused damage to their home.
The rental provider may send the renter a repair notice that requires them to repair the damage within 14 days. If the renter cannot repair the damage, the rental provider can instead repair the damage themselves and ask the renter to reimburse them for the cost of the repairs within 14 days.
If the renter is not able to reimburse the rental provider in this short timeframe, they can let the rental provider know that they need an additional 14 days due to experiencing hardship.
If a renter cannot complete the repairs or reimburse the rental provider, their rental provider may apply to VCAT for a compliance or compensation order. If the damage was caused by family or personal violence, the renter might be protected from paying costs to repair the damage. If this is the case, it’s best to speak to a lawyer if your client is in this situation.
If the person using violence against your client is on the rental agreement, your client can apply to VCAT to make changes to the agreement. For example, your client can apply to end the lease agreement they share and have a new agreement created in just their name.
As part of this, your client can also ask VCAT to decide who is responsible for any unpaid rent or damage. VCAT can also make orders about the bond, including that the person using violence should have their bond put toward unpaid rent or damage. VCAT can also make orders protecting your client’s share of the bond.
Read more about changing a lease and VCAT orders.
If the damage is serious, the rental provider can give a renter a notice to vacate asking them to leave the property.
If a renter has experienced family or personal violence, and they have been given notice to vacate for serious damage that is connected to family or personal violence, they can ask for VCAT to declare the notice to vacate invalid. This is called challenging a notice to vacate.
For example, if a person using violence damaged your client’s front door and they received a notice to vacate for serious damage, they could argue that the notice to vacate should be dismissed because of its connection to family or personal violence.
To challenge a notice to vacate because of family or personal violence, your client must do this within 30 days of receiving the notice. Otherwise, they will need to request that VCAT grant an extension, and there is no guarantee that VCAT will do so. If your client is in this position, they should get legal help as soon as possible.
Read more about notices to vacate.
If your client needs to leave their home because of family violence or personal violence, and they are still listed in the rental agreement, they will still be responsible for paying rent and may be liable for any damage which occurs.
The strongest option to protect your client against having to pay for damage caused by family violence or for any rent incurred after they leave the property, is applying to VCAT to end a rental agreement because of family violence. For this reason, if your client is thinking of leaving due to family violence, we recommend that they consider applying to VCAT to end their rental agreement.
Read more about ending a rental agreement.
After a tenancy ends, either the renter/s or the rental provider can apply to VCAT for the bond to be returned to them.
If your client is on the rental agreement but the person using violence is not, VCAT can make orders to protect your client’s portion of a bond and determine how much they (and any co-renters) owe the rental provider, if:
If your client has experienced family or personal violence and they and the person using violence against them are both on the rental agreement, your client can ask VCAT to protect their bond. In this situation, VCAT can make orders that:
Your client does not need to have an intervention order or family violence safety notice to access these protections if both your client and the person using violence are on the rental agreement.
The rental provider may apply to VCAT for compensation if there is unpaid rent or damage to the property at the end of the rental agreement and the amount is more than the bond will cover. Rental providers can apply for both bond and compensation at the same time.
If the rental provider is asking for compensation through VCAT, we recommend seeking legal help for your client.
Legal services
The following services might be able to provide advice and assistance if your client needs help with arrears or damage at the property due to family or personal violence:
Family violence services
See our referral page for legal support and other support options.
Our free self-help tool, Home of Your Own, provides personalised legal information, practical guidance, and templates for Victorian renters who are facing family violence.
The content on the Workers’ Resource Hub is legal information for general guidance and not legal advice. The content on this webpage was last updated in August 2023. See full disclaimer and copyright notice.
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