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RESIDENTIAL TENANCIES ACT 1995 - SECT 73

RESIDENTIAL TENANCIES ACT 1995 - SECT 73

73—Statutory charges

        (1)         It is a term of a residential tenancy agreement that the landlord must bear all statutory charges imposed in respect of the premises.

        (2)         However, the following provisions apply subject to subsections (3) and (4):

            (a)         rates and charges for water supply are to be borne as agreed between the landlord and tenant;

            (b)         in the absence of an agreement—

                  (i)         if the supply of water to the premises is separately metered—rates and charges for water supply are to be borne by the tenant; and

                  (ii)         in any other case—rates and charges for water supply are to be borne by the landlord.

        (3)         A tenant is not required to pay rates and charges for water supply if—

            (a)         the landlord fails to request payment from the tenant within 3 months of the issue of the bill for those rates and charges by the water supply authority; or

            (b)         the tenant has requested from the landlord a copy of the account for the rates and charges and the landlord has failed to provide the copy to the tenant within 30 days of the request and at no cost.

        (4)         A landlord must ensure that an amount borne by a tenant under an agreement under subsection (2)(a) or under subsection (2)(b)(i) is reduced by—

            (a)         in the case of a tenant on land held as a single title consisting of a single place of residence—the water security rebate amount; or

            (b)         in the case of a tenant on land held as a single title consisting of more than 1 place of residence—the proportionate water security rebate amount,

(and if the reduction under this subsection results in a negative amount, 0 is to be substituted for that amount).

        (5)         If, during the billing period in which a landlord obtained the benefit of the water security rebate amount, the premises to which the rebate relates were subject to more than 1 residential tenancy agreement, the landlord must ensure that a reduction under subsection (4) is applied to the amount borne by a tenant under each tenancy agreement on a pro rata basis according to the number of days in the billing period in which each tenancy agreement respectively applied at the premises.

        (6)         In this section—

"proportionate water security rebate amount", in relation to a tenant on land held as a single title consisting of more than 1 place of residence, is the amount that results from dividing the water security rebate amount for that title by the number of places of residence at the land to which the title relates;

"water security rebate amount", in relation to rates and charges for water supply to residential premises, means the amount specified in an account for those rates and charges (whether before or after the commencement of this definition) as representing the rebate for water security purposes.