Victorian renters to be given free access to dispute resolution service to tackle spats with landlords

Victorian renters will be given free access to a dispute resolution service to manage conflicts with their landlords in the Allan government’s latest bid to grapple with the state’s housing crisis.

The government is set to introduce a new rental dispute resolution service in a bid to make life easier for renters.

Rental Dispute Resolution Victoria will give tenants free access to “highly skilled dispute resolution experts” via phone call, online or an in-person meeting.

“Rental Dispute Resolution Victoria will provide a faster, fairer and cheaper avenue for dispute resolution,” Minister for Consumer Affairs Gabrielle Williams said.

The introduction of the new service is intended to avoid arguments with landlords going to lengthy and sometimes costly Victorian Civil Administration Tribunal hearings.

Rental reform is one several measures announced by the state government this week in a bid to address the housing crisis. Picture: David Crosling

Victoria is the tribunal capital of Australia, with over 45,000 tenancy cases filed at tribunal in 2022/23.

There were fewer than 32,000 such cases in New South Wales, the state or territory with the next most.

At the moment renters — and landlords — have little choice but to take issues to VCAT if they have not been able to agree to a mutual path forward over a disagreement.

The introduction of RDRV is part of a raft of legislation announced by Labor in recent days as it grapples with how to solve the housing crisis.

On Thursday Jacinta Allan announced homeowners could be given the green light to subdivide their land without a permit to make it easier for owners to build a second home on their land.

The government is also set to release huge swathes of land on Melbourne’s fringe to free up space for thousands of homes.

A plan for high density neighbourhoods around 50 suburbs including Brighton sparked fury from some residents.

“Rental Dispute Resolution Victoria is about providing Victorians with a fair, efficient way of resolving tenancy disputes which is a critical step to ensuring everyone has access to safe and secure housing,” Attorney-General Jaclyn Symes said.

Attorney-General Jaclyn Symes said the measures would make the dispute resolution process “fair” and “efficient”. Picture: NewsWire/Diego Fedele

The government said it anticipated RDRV would be able to resolve 60 per cent of disputes, significantly reducing the need for lawyers to get involved at a tribunal.

Although VCAT has worked to reduce a hearing backlog, some cases still take years to be resolved, leaving both landlord and tenant uncertain and worse off.

The RDRV will begin work in mid-2025 and the Allen government will introduce legislation in November to make RDRV orders binding and enforceable.

Along with the introduction of the RDRV, the government will also trial a scheme which allows renters’ bonds to be transferred from one property directly to another when they move home.

A similar scheme was announced by the NSW government earlier this year.

“Our portable bonds scheme is about making life easier for renters, relieving the stress of having to pay the bond on your new home before you’ve received the bond back for the home you’re leaving,” Ms Williams said.

Originally published as Victorian renters to be given free access to dispute resolution service to tackle spats with landlords