Qld's Residential Tenancies Authority has taken issue with claims in the media that there are 30,000 Covid-19 related requests for dispute resolution.
Either in search of clicks or lazy journalism, the article got the figures completely wrong.
While the RTA Covid-19 Hotline has handled 28,042 phone calls since late March, there have only been 1,281 conciliated disputes, with 80% resolved.
The RTA’s conciliation data does not indicate that tenants and landlords are “going to war” as the article states. Rather, where Covid-19 related issues have arisen, the parties are negotiating in a reasonable manner.
The total number of phone calls comprises calls by all parties, not just tenants. As one real estate agent has indicated, they have rung the Hotline multiple times to clarify various issues.
As the RTA states: “The RTA thanks the Queensland renting community for doing their absolute best to work cooperatively and constructively together during these challenging times."
RTA responds: COVID-19 dispute resolution data article
June 2020
© PELEN 2020
The content of this publication is intended to provide a general overview on matters which may be of interest. It is not intended to be comprehensive. It does not constitute advice in relation to particular circumstances nor does it constitute the provision of legal services, legal advice or financial product advice.