A bond dispute happens when the parties to a bond do not agree on how the bond should be divided at the end of the tenancy. We encourage you to talk to each other to reach an agreement before any claims on the bond are made.

If you do not agree, the party who first submits a claim on the bond to CBS is said to be submitting a non-consented claim.

Making a non-consented claim on the bond and managing the dispute process can be done through Residential Bonds Online (RBO).

Avoiding disputes

Tenants/residents should:

  • make sure rent is paid up to the end date on the lease
  • pay any outstanding water supply charges
  • check the property using the inspection sheet and any photos they took when they moved in
  • complete the inspection sheet and take photos when they leave
  • update RBO with their new contact details - this can speed up the refund process.

Landlords should:

  • understand fair wear and tear
  • have photos of the condition of the property before the tenant moved in for peace of mind.

Making a non-consented claim on the bond

When making a non-consented claim, a managing party (such as a real estate agent, proprietor, park operator or other organisation managing the rental property) must provide CBS with evidence of why they are claiming the amount requested. See the Document to support a non-consented bond claim for information on what is acceptable as evidence.

The tenant is then made aware of the managing party’s claim and can choose to either:

  • accept the claim,
  • make a counter-offer of a different amount, or
  • escalate the matter to the South Australian Civil and Administrative Tribunal (SACAT) for a ruling.
  • ignore the claim.

If the tenant does not respond to the notification of claim on the bond by the required date, or cannot be reached, the tenant is said to be silent on the topic. In this case, CBS will assess the evidence for the claim on the bond provided by the managing party.

If CBS accepts the evidence is sufficient, CBS will release the amount requested to the managing party. Any remaining money owed to the tenant will then become unclaimed.

Claims by the managing party can also be refused by CBS if the evidence is deemed to be insufficient. If the managing party disagrees with CBS’s decision, an application will need to be made the South Australian Civil & Administrative Tribunal (SACAT) to have the claim assessed again.

Tenants do not need to provide proof of a claim on the bond.

The managing party can choose to either:

  • accept the claim,
  • make a counter-offer of a different amount, or
  • escalate the matter to the South Australian Civil and Administrative Tribunal for a ruling.
  • ignore the claim.

If the managing party does not respond within 14 days, the tenant will be paid the amount claimed.

Tenants claiming a portion of the bond through RBO are able to allocate different amounts to different people. If there is no agreement between tenants on who should be paid what amount, the following process applies:

An initial claim on the bond, or refund request, is made by a tenant. All other parties to the bond, including other tenants and the managing party, are then notified.

If the managing party agrees to the amounts requested, but the other tenant/s do not, the other tenant/s can either:

  • accept the amount offered
  • make one final counter-offer of a different amount via RBO
  • reject the proposed amount
  • ignore the claim or do nothing

If the counter-offer is rejected by the tenant who made the initial claim, or the notice of claim is ignored, the bond is paid out to each tenant in an equal split.

Any further disputes regarding the bond then become a civil matter and no longer involves CBS.

This is a new process designed to give parties greater ability to negotiate and reach resolution without the need for the matter to be referred to SACAT.

Instead of either accepting or rejecting the notice of claim, the party receiving the claim may make a counter-offer as to how much they are willing to pay to reach an agreement.

Once a party rejects an offer, the opposing party will have the choice of withdrawing their offer, making another counter-offer, or escalating the claim to SACAT.

Each counter-offer request made through RBO has a timeframe of 10 days. Parties may counter-offer between themselves up to seven times before the matter must be referred to SACAT.

If the matter is escalated to SACAT, CBS is no longer involved in the dispute process.

Once SACAT makes an order on who should be paid what amount, CBS will release the bond as instructed.