NSW agencies have been forced to refund $180,000 in illegal rent payments and background check fees to 3,000 renters, as the state’s rental taskforce clamps down on wrongful charges.
NSW’s rental taskforce has ordered agencies to refund $180,000 to tenants who were illegally made to hand over illegal rent payments and background check fees, as part of a major crackdown.
Under NSW laws, agents and landlords can charge tenants the exact bank fees incurred from a late rental payment, but they cannot charge additional penalties or interest.
The government said, in its first year, the taskforce identified 3,000 renters affected by the breaches, with one agency found to have issued 2,071 illegal dishonour charges to 795 tenants between July 2020 and April 2025.
Following the investigation, the agency entered a voluntary enforceable undertaking, with NSW Fair Trading ordering tenants be refunded more than $124,000.
Out of the 795 renters affected, 371 were unlawfully charged multiple times, in one case resulting in a refund of $2,400.
The agency also agreed to make a $10,000 contribution to the NSW Consumer Law Fund to go towards providing education to the sector on rental legislation and compliance obligations.
Another investigation found nearly 2,400 applicants were wrongfully charged $19.95 each for background checks through an online rental platform.
The company refunded tenants more than $48,000 in charges and disabled the background check function on its website.
Additionally, the rental taskforce has been using Rental Bonds Online data to identify landlords or agents charging more than four weeks of rent as a bond, with a compliance program underway to issue penalties for serious breaches.
Since its inception, the taskforce has investigated almost 8,000 rental matters as part of the government’s bid to make renting fairer.
Better Regulation and Fair Trading Minister, Anoulack Chanthivong, said the taskforce was committed to recovering renters’ hard-earned money and cracking down on irresponsible actors taking advantage of them.
“The government is also rolling out Smart Rental Bonds later this year, so renters can transfer their bond between properties, saving about $4,000 each time they move,” he said.
NSW rental commissioner, Trina Jones, said the results of the enforcement showed work was being done to provide a fair and balanced marketplace, with renters also becoming more aware of their rights.
“We’ve seen renter awareness jump from 33 to 80 per cent in our recent customer survey, and that’s critical to making sure people know their rights and where to access help when they need it,” Jones concluded.
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