We generally understand and talk about bonds as security deposits; on the one hand, they give a landlord the peace of mind to rent to a stranger and on
the other hand cushion a tenant against onerous financial burden should a claim be made against him at the end of the tenancy. What we tend to be less
mindful of is that ultimately, the bond is the tenant’s money and the law recognises it as such.
What does this mean in practice? Most straightforwardly, it means that landlords have no automatic right to the bond. And we see that clearly play out
in certain aspects of the bond process. For example, while landlords ‘collect’ the bond, we don’t get to hold on to it. We are required to forward*
the full amount with Tenancy Services Bond Centre within 23 working days of receipt.
(Indeed, we’ve become all too familiar with shocking accounts of rogue landlords hoarding thousands of dollars worth of bond illegally only to be
heavily sanctioned by the Tenancy Tribunal.) We cannot access the bond in part or in full without either the tenant’s consent (co-signed bond refund
form) or pursuant to a Tribunal order.
What is more imperceptible but not less important is what happens when a tenant makes an application to the Tribunal for the bond to be refunded whilst
the landlord has reason to believe that she is entitled to that same bond (in part or in whole). How will the Tribunal treat these competing claims?
If the landlord, in response to the tenant’s application, makes a cross-application to lay claim to the bond then the Tribunal will hear from both parties
and adjudge their respective...
