Urgent repairs in Tasmania: what renters can do
Urgent repairs are essential services that stop working: water, sewerage, electricity, heating, the stove or oven, and hot water. Your owner must organise these within 24 hours.
Your rights in plain English
- Emergency repairs are damage that will get worse, like a storm-broken window. They must be done as soon as possible.
- If you can't contact the owner, or nothing is organised in 24 hours, you can use the nominated repairer in your lease (or a qualified repairer) to do the minimum work needed.
- Give the owner the repairer's statement of the cause, the invoice and your receipt. They must pay you back within 14 days.
- Unresolved disputes go to the Magistrates Court.
Put it in writing, with your rights spelled out
Our free email tool writes the message to your agent for Tasmania, quoting your rights. Keep dated photos and a record you can use at the end of your lease.
The email tool is free. The $29 Tenancy Pass adds your condition report and dated record for the whole lease, incl. GST, with a 14-day money-back guarantee.
What your email should say
- This is an urgent repair under the Residential Tenancy Act 1997 (Tas), and you must organise it within 24 hours.
- If it is not organised in that time, I am entitled to engage the nominated or a qualified repairer. You must then reimburse me within 14 days of receiving the repairer's statement, invoice and receipt.
Where to get help
Consumer Affairs Tasmania (1300 654 499) · Residential Tenancy Commissioner · Tenants' Union of Tasmania.
Source: Residential Tenancy Act 1997 (Tas). General information only, not legal advice. Last checked October 2026. Check your state's tenancy authority for your situation.