Fair Wear and Tear vs Damage in a Victoria Rental

The line between fair wear and tear and genuine damage decides whether your bond deduction claim survives at VCAT or gets thrown out. Victorian law doesn't give landlords a simple checklist — it uses a depreciation principle that catches out landlords who try to claim full replacement costs for aged items.

What Counts as Fair Wear and Tear

Fair wear and tear is the natural deterioration that occurs through ordinary use of a property over time. It's what happens even when a renter treats the place with reasonable care.

Examples that Victorian tribunals consistently treat as fair wear and tear:

• Faded paint or curtains from sunlight exposure
• Minor scuff marks on walls in high-traffic areas
• Worn carpet in hallways and living areas
• Small nail holes from hanging pictures
• Loose door handles from regular use
• Dulled kitchen benchtop finish

None of these are deductible from a bond.

What Counts as Damage

Damage goes beyond normal use. It's the result of negligence, misuse, or intentional action:

• Large holes in walls
• Burns or stains on carpet that cleaning can't remove
• Broken windows, doors, or fixtures
• Graffiti or unapproved painting
• Pet damage — scratches on doors, urine stains, damaged fly screens
• Missing fixtures or fittings listed on the condition report

Damage is deductible, but only at its depreciated value — not the full replacement cost.

The Depreciation Rule

This is where most landlord claims fall apart. You cannot claim the full price of replacing a damaged item if that item had already been used for years.

VCAT applies a useful-life depreciation calculation. If an item has a statutory useful life of 10 years and it was 9 years old when the renter damaged it beyond repair, you can claim at most 10% of the replacement cost — the remaining value the item had left.

Common useful-life benchmarks used in Victorian tribunal decisions:

A five-year-old carpet with a 10-year useful life that gets destroyed is worth 50% of replacement — not 100%.

Cleaning Claims

You can claim cleaning costs only when the property is left below the standard of cleanliness recorded on the entry condition report, accounting for fair wear and tear.

You cannot enforce a blanket "professional carpet steam clean" clause. Victoria specifically prohibits mandatory professional cleaning charges unless:

1. Professional cleaning is needed to restore the property to the cleanliness documented at the start of the tenancy.
2. The renter agreed to specific cleaning terms to accommodate a pet, and professional cleaning is needed to deal with pet-related hygiene issues.

If the entry condition report said "carpets — professional clean standard" and the renter returns them in a similar state with normal wear, there's nothing to claim regardless of what the lease says.

Building a Defensible Claim

Before deducting anything from the bond, you need:

1. The entry condition report (Form 2) showing the original state of the item.
2. Exit photos documenting the current damage.
3. The depreciation calculation showing the item's remaining value.
4. Quotes or receipts for the repair or replacement at the depreciated amount.

All of this must be delivered to the renter at least 3 business days before you submit a bond claim to the RTBA. Skipping the 3-day evidence delivery invalidates the claim.

The Rental Bonds in Victoria guide includes depreciation worksheets and a pre-claim evidence log template designed for exactly this calculation.

See more Victoria guides →