Urgent and non-urgent rental repairs in Victoria
Short answer
Urgent rental repairs—such as burst water services, gas leaks, dangerous electrical faults or failure of essential services—must be arranged immediately under Consumer Affairs Victoria's guidance. Rental providers must make non-urgent repairs within 14 days of receiving a written request. Tell the rental provider or agent promptly and keep a dated record.
What is an urgent repair?
CAV's urgent-repair examples include serious roof leaks, broken or blocked toilets, dangerous electrical faults, gas leaks, burst water services and essential services that have failed. Read the current official list for the particular issue; a general article cannot assess whether your situation is safe.
If there is immediate danger, seek appropriate emergency or qualified safety help. Do not wait for an ordinary repair appointment or attempt hazardous gas or electrical work yourself.
If the repair is urgent
Contact the rental provider or agent straight away through the emergency contact and confirm your report in writing. Keep the time, response and any photos or professional report. If you've notified the rental provider and there's no prompt response, CAV allows you to arrange a qualifying urgent repair costing $2,500 or less. For more expensive work, use the urgent RDRV pathway instead. CAV says RDRV reviews those applications within two business days; that is not a guarantee the repair will be finished within that period. See Paying for an urgent rental repair in Victoria: how to request reimbursement for the separate reimbursement conditions and deadlines before paying for work yourself.
If the repair is non-urgent
Make a dated request in writing, explaining the problem. CAV says the rental provider must make non-urgent repairs within 14 days of receiving the written request. If it remains unresolved, CAV describes inspection, RDRV or, for some overdue matters, VCAT application options. Check the route for the actual issue and your notices.
Keep paying rent while the dispute is unresolved
CAV instructs renters to keep paying rent during an unresolved repair matter. A formal Rent Special Account is a separate process; don't simply stop paying rent because an ordinary repair request is overdue.
A short repair request
Replace bracketed placeholders before sending.
I'm reporting [problem] at [location in property], first noticed on [date]. It affects [factual symptoms and any immediate safety concern]. Please confirm how and when a suitable repair will be arranged. I'm keeping this request in writing.
For arranging and seeking reimbursement for urgent work, see Paying for an urgent rental repair in Victoria: how to request reimbursement. For dispute processes, see RDRV or VCAT? Where to take a Victorian renting dispute.
Your next step
Prepare a repair request
Turn the details of your job into an enquiry you can check, copy and send yourself.
Prepare a repair requestMore guides on this topic
- Bond deductions in Victoria: what evidence to ask for
- Fair wear and tear versus rental damage in Victoria
- Can a Victorian landlord charge for new carpet or repainting?
- End-of-lease cleaning charges in Victoria: when can they be claimed?
- Paying for an urgent rental repair in Victoria: how to request reimbursement
- RDRV or VCAT? Where to take a Victorian renting dispute
- Preparing evidence for a Victorian rental dispute