Safe Tenancy WA

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Family and domestic violence and tenancy laws

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Every person has the right to feel safe in their home.

Call 000 if you are in danger. 

Call 1800RESPECT on 1800 737 732 (24 hours) to talk to a counsellor about family violence and get support.

Stay safe – Contacting the police or a support service can be the first step to getting help.

Tenants affected by family and domestic violence (FDV) and renting a home, can choose to:

  • Stay at the home or
  • Leave the home.

This video and the information after explains the laws and they can be used. 

Definitions 

  • Landlord – is the lessor who is a head-tenant, owner of the home or their agent/manager.
  • Tenant – the person renting the home.
  • Rental agreement – the lease, tenancy agreement
  • Disputes – disagreements or problems.
  • Perpetrators – person who is acting violent.

On this page:

Leaving the home

Tenants 

  • Can leave straight away
  • Do not have to go to court.
  • Must let the landlord know. See more at Notice to leave below.
  • Give seven (7) days' notice. YOU DO NOT HAVE TO STAY. This just means you will have to pay a weeks rent even if you leave straight away. There are ways of getting help to cover this payment.
  • You will not have to pay any other fees or charges for leaving early.
  • The bond may be used for money owed or damage.

Landlords

  • Have the right to have seven (7) days' notice. Tenants can leave straight away but still need to cover the notice period.
  • Can’t charge any other fees or charges for leaving early.
  • Must remove the tenant from the rental agreement.
  • Give any co-tenants a copy of the termination notice only.
  • Keep the tenants evidence private and confidential.
  • Can’t argue if FDV has occured.

Notice to leave

Tenats will need to give the landlord:

Who can sign the Consumer Protection FDV Evidence Form

The form can be signed by:

  • a doctor;
  • a psychologist;
  • a social worker;
  • a person in charge of a women’s refuge; 
  • a police officer;
  • a child protection worker;
  • a family support worker; or
  • a person in charge of an Aboriginal health, welfare or legal organisation.

Stay at the home 

A tenant can apply to court to have a perpetrator’s name removed from the rental agreement.

A tenant can make the home safer by changing the locks or security upgrades.

Making security upgrades without permission

A tenant can make security upgrades without asking the landlord e.g. change the locks.

The tenant must 

  • let the landlord know about the security upgrades.
  • have the security installed by a qualified tradesperson.
  • pay for the upgrades, unless the landlord has agreed to pay for them
  • give a copy of any invoice to the landlord.
  • give a copy of any new keys to the landlord within 7 days (unless the landlord is the perpetrator)
  • follow laws or strata rules
  • take into consideration the age and character of the property eg heritage listing
  • be aware of any health risks eg asbestos.

A landlord can ask the tenant to remove the security upgrades when they move out of the home.

More information is available on the making changes page.

Rights of remaining co-tenants

Co-tenant/s:

  • can stay in the home, even if they are the alleged perpetrator. They may be asked to top up the bond if part of the bond was returned to a leaving tenant; or
  • give 21 days’ notice and leave the home.

Keeping perpetrators housed

Letting the victim leave and keeping the perpetrator housed helps the safety of the victim(s). The perpetrator will be responsible for continuing to pay rent and topping up the bond if they stay.

When the court gets involved

The court can help you to stay in the home and sort out who needs to fix any property damage, unpaid rent or bonds.

Tenancy databases

Tenants names must not be added to a tenancy database because of an FDV issue.

Tenants can ask for their name to be removed from a tenancy database if the listing was because of FDV.

Need help?

We can give you help you with information on:

  • Staying in the home
  • Leaving the home
  • Forms and processes
  • Your rights on repairs, tenancy databases, adding security and evictions.
  • support services. 

The following resources can also help:

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