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It sets out the Director of Consumer Affairs Victoria’s position on compliance and non-compliance with the Residential Tenancies Act 1997, aiming for consistent VCAT decision-making. The guideline clarifies key legal duties, distinguishes damage from deterioration due to reasonable use and natural forces, and highlights how related obligations can overlap with maintenance and urgent repairs.",{"@graph":63,"@context":119},[64,80,102],{"@type":65,"itemListElement":66},"BreadcrumbList",[67,71,74,77],{"item":68,"name":69,"@type":70,"position":9},"https://docshare.wps.com","Home","ListItem",{"item":72,"name":10,"@type":70,"position":73},"https://docshare.wps.com/template/",2,{"item":75,"name":41,"@type":70,"position":76},"https://docshare.wps.com/template/letters/",3,{"item":78,"name":59,"@type":70,"position":79},"https://docshare.wps.com/template/guideline-3-damage-and-fair-wear-and-tear-purpose/175709/",4,{"url":78,"name":59,"@type":81,"image":82,"author":87,"headline":59,"publisher":90,"fileFormat":93,"inLanguage":57,"description":61,"dateModified":94,"datePublished":95,"encodingFormat":93,"isAccessibleForFree":96,"interactionStatistic":97},"DigitalDocument",{"url":83,"@type":84,"width":85,"height":86},"https://docshare.wps.com/thumbnails/guideline-3-damage-and-fair-wear-and-tear-purpose/175709.png","ImageObject",442,249,{"name":88,"@type":89},"Theodore","Person",{"url":68,"name":91,"@type":92},"DocShare","Organization","application/vnd.openxmlformats-officedocument.wordprocessingml.document","2026-10-19","2026-09-02",true,{"@type":98,"interactionType":99,"userInteractionCount":101},"InteractionCounter",{"@type":100},"ViewAction",10,{"@type":103,"mainEntity":104},"FAQPage",[105,111,115],{"name":106,"@type":107,"acceptedAnswer":108},"What is the purpose of Guideline 3?","Question",{"text":109,"@type":110},"It outlines the Director’s position on compliance and non-compliance with the Residential Tenancies Act, supporting greater consistency in VCAT decision-making and dispute resolution.","Answer",{"name":112,"@type":107,"acceptedAnswer":113},"How does the law distinguish damage from fair wear and tear?",{"text":114,"@type":110},"The Act treats “damage” as distinct from fair wear and tear, which is deterioration caused by reasonable use and natural forces. Damage does not include fair wear and tear caused by the renter or a visitor.",{"name":116,"@type":107,"acceptedAnswer":117},"What obligations do renters have when they become aware of damage?",{"text":118,"@type":110},"A renter who becomes aware of damage must advise the residential rental provider in writing as soon as practicable, including the nature and details of the damage.","https://schema.org",{"og:url":78,"og:type":121,"og:title":59,"og:site_name":91,"og:description":61},"article",{"robots":123,"canonical":78},"index,follow",{"doc_id":125,"site_id":56},175709,1788321564,{"code":4,"msg":5,"data":128},{"doc_id":125,"user_id":129,"nickname":88,"user_avatar":130,"doc_module":9,"category_id":40,"category_name":41,"doc_title":59,"doc_description":61,"doc_content":131,"file_id":132,"file_url":133,"file_type":134,"file_size":135,"view_count":101,"is_deleted":4,"is_public":9,"is_downloadable":9,"audit_status":9,"page_count":136,"language":137,"language_code":57,"site_id":56,"html_lang":57,"table_of_contents":138,"faqs":139,"seo_title":140,"seo_description":61,"update_tm":126,"read_time":76},7971461740886,"https://ap-avatar.wpscdn.com/davatar_3d24733baf745e90a7e4bdd5f77d97b2","Table of contents\n\u0013 TOC \\o \"1-2\" \\h \\z \\u \u0014\u0013 HYPERLINK \\l \"_Toc64285654\" \u00141.\tPurpose\t\u0013 PAGEREF _Toc64285654 \\h \u00143\u0015\u0015\n\u0013 HYPERLINK \\l \"_Toc64285655\" \u00142.\tHow to read these guidelines\t\u0013 PAGEREF _Toc64285655 \\h \u00143\u0015\u0015\n\u0013 HYPERLINK \\l \"_Toc64285656\" \u00143.\tContext\t\u0013 PAGEREF _Toc64285656 \\h \u00143\u0015\u0015\n\u0013 HYPERLINK \\l \"_Toc64285657\" \u00144.\tThe law\t\u0013 PAGEREF _Toc64285657 \\h \u00144\u0015\u0015\n\u0013 HYPERLINK \\l \"_Toc64285658\" \u00144.1\tLegislation\t\u0013 PAGEREF _Toc64285658 \\h \u00144\u0015\u0015\n\u0013 HYPERLINK \\l \"_Toc64285659\" \u00144.2\tCase law\t\u0013 PAGEREF _Toc64285659 \\h \u00144\u0015\u0015\n\u0013 HYPERLINK \\l \"_Toc64285660\" \u00145.\tDistinguishing between damage and fair wear and tear\t\u0013 PAGEREF _Toc64285660 \\h \u00145\u0015\u0015\n\u0013 HYPERLINK \\l \"_Toc64285661\" \u00145.1\tExamples\t\u0013 PAGEREF _Toc64285661 \\h \u00146\u0015\u0015\n\u0013 HYPERLINK \\l \"_Toc64285662\" \u00145.2\tPet related fair wear and tear\t\u0013 PAGEREF _Toc64285662 \\h \u00146\u0015\u0015\n\u0013 HYPERLINK \\l \"_Toc64285663\" \u00146.\tDocument information\t\u0013 PAGEREF _Toc64285663 \\h \u00148\u0015\u0015\n\u0015\n\u000f\nPurpose\nBetween 2015 and 2018, the Victorian Government conducted a review of the Residential Tenancies Act 1997 (the Act), as part of its plan for Fairer, Safer Housing.\nIn September 2018, the Victorian Parliament passed the Residential Tenancies Amendment Act 2018 (RTAA) to respond to the outcomes of the review. The RTAA provides for over 130 reforms to the Act to increase protections for renters, while ensuring residential rental providers (RRPs) can still effectively manage their properties.\nOf the 130 reforms, five reforms relate to the issuing of guidelines by the Director of Consumer Affairs Victoria (the Director) as follows:\nGuideline 1 – Maintenance\nGuideline 2 – Cleanliness\nGuideline 3 – Damage and fair wear and tear\nGuideline 4 – Urgent repairs\nGuideline 5 – Endanger.\nThe Director may issue guidelines under section 486 of the Act. The Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal (VCAT) must consider the guidelines when determining particular applications made under the Act.\nThe purpose of the guidelines is to outline the Director’s position on compliance and non\u001ecompliance with the Act, ensuring greater consistency in VCAT decision making and dispute resolution.\nThe Act is not prescriptive and does not go into great detail about what the parties’ obligations mean in practice. The guidelines summarise relevant case law that may be useful in interpreting the Act and providing practical guidance that parties to a tenancy agreement can rely on when determining how to comply with their duties, facilitating the resolution of unnecessary or protracted disputes.\nVCAT must have regard to this guideline when determining an application under sections 211B and 452 of the Act regarding damage and fair wear and tear.\nHow to read these guidelines\nThe subject matter of the guidelines is interrelated and often overlaps - for example, maintenance issues may result in the need for urgent repairs. Accordingly, the guidelines should be read in conjunction with one another where appropriate.\nThis guideline applies to all tenure types except for specialist disability accommodation.\nThe term residential rental provider (RRP) has been used to include rooming house operators, caravan owners, caravan park owners and site owners for simplicity.\nThe term renter has been used to include rooming house residents, caravan park residents and site tenants for simplicity.\nContext\nReform 45 of the Fairer, Safer Housing reforms provides that the Director will issue guidelines clarifying the meaning of damage and fair wear and tear. VCAT will be required to have regard to these guidelines when determining related disputes. This reform applies to rented premises, rooming houses, caravan parks and residential parks (a park where a Part 4A site is rented).\nThe law\nLegislation\nSection 61(1) of the Act imposes a duty on renters and their visitors to not intentionally or negligently cause damage to rented premises or any common areas. Section 61(2) provides that for the purposes of subsection (1) ‘damage’ does not include fair wear and tear caused by a renter or a visitor.\nSection 62 prov","cbCaik8Zf7RIpmSJ","https://ap.wps.com/l/cbCaik8Zf7RIpmSJ","docx",293512,7,"English","# Purpose\n# How to read these guidelines\n# Context\n# The law\n## Legislation\n## Case law\n## Distinguishing between damage and fair wear and tear","[{\"question\":\"What is the purpose of Guideline 3?\",\"answer\":\"It outlines the Director’s position on compliance and non-compliance with the Residential Tenancies Act, supporting greater consistency in VCAT decision-making and dispute resolution.\"},{\"question\":\"How does the law distinguish damage from fair wear and tear?\",\"answer\":\"The Act treats “damage” as distinct from fair wear and tear, which is deterioration caused by reasonable use and natural forces. Damage does not include fair wear and tear caused by the renter or a visitor.\"},{\"question\":\"What obligations do renters have when they become aware of damage?\",\"answer\":\"A renter who becomes aware of damage must advise the residential rental provider in writing as soon as practicable, including the nature and details of the damage.\"}]","Guideline 3 - Damage and fair wear and tear - Purpose | DOCX"]