The Department of Communities has streamlined the way it manages complaints to make it easier for people to raise concerns about disruptive tenants.
There are 3 severity categories of disruptive behaviour:
- dangerous behaviours – activities that pose a risk to the safety or security of residents or property, or have resulted in injury to a person in the immediate vicinity of the premises. This includes a common area or adjacent premises when the person is in occupation or is a permitted visitor.
- serious behaviours – activities that intentionally or recklessly cause serious disturbance or damage to a person or property in the immediate vicinity of the premises. This includes behaviour that could be expected to cause concern for the safety and security of a person or property.
- disruptive behaviours – activities that cause an ongoing or unreasonable nuisance. This includes unreasonably interference with the peace, privacy and comfort of a person in the immediate vicinity of the premises.
The Department of Communities can only investigate and take action against tenants at public housing properties if the disruptive behaviour breaches the conditions of their tenancy agreement or the Residential Tenancies Act 1987.
Some activities or behaviour may be concerning but cannot be investigated by the Department, including:
- unpleasant or annoying neighbours
- personal disputes or disagreements you may have with a neighbour
- noise and activity associated with normal daily life e.g. children playing
- barking dogs
- incidents that take place away from the tenant’s property
To help achieve the best outcome, it’s important to report issues to the appropriate agency.