Photographing and Filming Tenants’ Possessions for Advertising Purposes: Report

This community law reform project deals with the Residential Tenancies Act 1997 (Vic), especially the rights of landlords to advertise property and the right of tenants to privacy.

Advertisers publish extensive interior and exterior photographs of their properties across a range of websites, sometimes including the possessions and clues to identity of their tenants. This practice was not properly covered by the Act, so tenants needed to rely on the goodwill and professionalism of landlords and agents to ensure their privacy and security.

This project aimed to balance the rights of landlords to advertise with the rights to privacy and security of tenants. Tabled in Parliament in May 2015, the Commission’s report, Photographing and Filming Tenants’ Possessions for Advertising Purposes, made nine recommendations for changes in law and practice.

• Preface
• Terms of reference
• Executive summary
• Recommendations
• 1. Introduction
• 2. Tenant concerns
• 3. Right to enter
• 4. Notice of entry
• 5. Right to quiet enjoyment
• 6. Communication
• 7. Conclusion
• Appendix A: Submissions
• Appendix B: Consultations
• Appendix C: Online survey
• Bibliography