Are you at Risk of Legal Action?

Queensland Landlords have to take note of a recent court decision where a tenant won the court case suing the landlord for failing to keep the property in a safe condition. The case of Graton v Gillan Investments Pty Ltd found that the landlord had an obligation at the start of the tenancy of having the property inspected and assessed by a qualified person.

This is a significant development in Residential Tenancy Law. By broadening the requirements of ‘reasonable inspection’ landlords face increased liability for defects which may have previously not been detected.

It is recommended that landlords and property managers should make it a practise that at the commencement of each tenancy (and for all current tenancies) a qualified Building Inspector is engaged to examine the repair and safety of the property.

There is now a risk involved if there is a failure to conduct proper inspections as in this case, where the tenant was awarded damages of $100,000 for her injury.