Landlord Kept Your Bond? What to Do in Australia

You handed back the keys, did the final clean, and waited for the bond. Two weeks later you got a claim for the lot — carpet replacement, “professional cleaning”, garden restoration, paint touch-ups. Or worse, you got radio silence. Bond disputes are the single most common tenancy fight in Australia, and they are also the easiest to win — because the law is heavily on the tenant’s side and the landlord almost always overreaches.

Bond is your money

Across every state, residential bonds are held by an independent statutory authority, not by the landlord — Rental Bonds Online (New South Wales), the Residential Tenancies Bond Authority (Victoria), the Residential Tenancies Authority (Queensland), the Bond Administrator (Western Australia), Consumer and Business Services (South Australia), the Office of Rental Bonds (Australian Capital Territory), the Department of Justice (Tasmania), and the Commissioner of Tenancies (Northern Territory). The landlord cannot unilaterally take your bond — they must apply, and you can dispute.

Fair wear and tear is excluded

The Residential Tenancies Acts in every state explicitly exclude fair wear and tear from a tenant’s responsibilities — Section 51 of the New South Wales Act, Section 61 of the Victorian Act, Section 188 of the Queensland Act, and equivalents. Faded paint, worn carpet in traffic areas, minor scuffs, slightly stretched curtains — none of this is your problem. Landlords routinely claim for fair wear and tear and routinely lose at tribunal.

Cleaning claims must match the entry condition

The condition report you signed at the start of the tenancy is the benchmark. If the report did not record the property as “professionally cleaned” at entry, the landlord cannot demand professional cleaning at exit — they can only demand the same standard you received. Tribunals across Australia consistently apply this principle.

Receipts or no claim

Every state tribunal requires the landlord to substantiate every dollar claimed with quotes, invoices, receipts and (ideally) before/after photographs. Vague estimates and round numbers are routinely rejected. If the landlord cannot prove the cost was actually incurred and was actually attributable to your tenancy, the claim fails.

The deadline trap

Most states impose a tight window for the landlord to apply for the bond — typically 7 to 14 days from the end of the tenancy. Miss the window and the bond reverts to the tenant by default in many states. Always check the timing rules for your state authority.

The document that gets it back

A formal End-of-Lease Bond Dispute Letter, sent to the landlord and (where appropriate) lodged with the bond authority, itemises every disputed head, cites the relevant Residential Tenancies Act, references the entry condition report, and demands release of the bond within a defined deadline. It positions you for a tribunal application if the landlord digs in.

What Claim Done delivers

For a flat fee, Claim Done drafts your bond dispute letter as an Australian-law-compliant PDF — addressed correctly, citing the right state Act and tribunal, and framed to maximise your refund. Ten minutes in the wizard, no need to pay a tenancy advocate or solicitor.

What happens after

If they refuse, the matter goes to NCAT, VCAT, QCAT, the WA Magistrates Court, SACAT, ACAT, the Tasmanian Residential Tenancy Commissioner or the NT Civil and Administrative Tribunal.