If your rental provider wants part of your bond, you should have a chance to see what supports the claim before it is lodged. Since 13 October 2026, Victorian law requires the provider or their agent to give each renter supporting evidence in advance. That evidence must be consistent with the condition report. Consumer Affairs Victoria’s October update · Residential Tenancies Act, section 411
What should you receive?
Suppose you hand back the keys and the agent asks you to agree to a $380 deduction for a mark on the living room carpet. Before deciding, ask which mark they mean, what work they say is needed and how they arrived at $380. A photo can show the mark. A quote can explain the proposed cost. Neither, by itself, tells you what the carpet looked like when you moved in.
The Act recognises invoices, receipts, quotes and photographs as forms of bond claim evidence. Section 411(1A) requires the provider or agent to give the evidence to each renter at least three days before making a claim for repayment to the provider. Consumer Affairs Victoria tells providers to give notice at least three business days before lodging. For a provider planning a claim, the practical course is to allow that longer interval for both notice and evidence. Section 411 · Consumer Affairs Victoria’s procedure
Read the condition report alongside the claim
Pull out the copy you completed when you moved in. Find the entry for the room in question and compare it with your dated photos and any messages you sent the agent. In the carpet example, an entry describing a stain beside the window is particularly useful if the new photograph shows that same spot. If the agent says a different mark appeared during the tenancy, ask them to identify it so you can compare like with like.
Reply item by item. You might agree with one deduction and question another. Set out the amount you understand to be in dispute and attach the particular page or photo that explains why. Keep a copy of what you sent and when. If you receive a bond repayment request, check the proposed dollar amounts before accepting it. A renter can request a change if those amounts are wrong. How to review a repayment request
If you are the rental provider
Prepare a short list showing each item, the sum claimed and the supporting document. Check the list against the original condition report before sharing it with everyone named as a renter. If the matter goes to the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal and you seek an order paying the bond to you, your application must include supporting bond claim evidence consistent with the condition report. Section 419A(1A)
If you still disagree
After the agreement ends, a renter named on the bond can start a repayment claim through the Residential Tenancies Bond Authority. Check any notice promptly. The steps and response times depend on who started the claim. If you seek help through Rental Dispute Resolution Victoria, have the bond reference, condition report, photographs and correspondence together so you can explain exactly which deduction remains disputed. Consumer Affairs Victoria’s dispute guide