Window Cord Safety Anchors Victoria Rental: The December 2025 Blind Cord Rule

Since 1 December 2025, every internal corded window covering in a Victorian rental — blinds, curtains, roller blinds, Roman blinds — must have a compliant cord anchor or tensioning device. This is the cord-safety requirement in clause 10A of Schedule 4 of the Residential Tenancies Regulations 2021, and it applies universally across all rented properties with corded window treatments.

Why This Standard Exists

Loose blind cords form loops that pose a strangulation hazard, particularly for young children. The ACCC (Australian Competition and Consumer Commission) safety standard sets the benchmark: no loose cord loop exceeding 220mm. The Victorian rental standard adopts this threshold and makes compliance a landlord obligation.

What Counts as Compliant

A cord anchor or tensioning device must be:

• Fixed to the wall structure — not just clipped to the window frame or left dangling. The anchor must be permanently attached.
• Positioned to eliminate loops — the cord or chain must run through the anchor so no loose loop exceeds 220mm at any point.
• Present on every corded covering — roller blind chains, venetian blind cords, Roman blind pull cords, and curtain draw cords all require anchors.

The simplest solution for most properties is a screw-in cleat anchor — a small device that the cord wraps around, available from hardware stores for a few dollars each. Installation takes minutes per window.

Cordless blinds and curtains — roller blinds with spring mechanisms, curtains on tracks with wands instead of cords — are inherently compliant because there's no cord to anchor.

What About Window Coverings (Standard 10) and Window Latches (Standard 12)?

These three standards work together but are separate requirements:

Standard 10 (Window coverings): Bedrooms and living areas must have light-blocking, privacy-providing curtains or blinds. This means you need window coverings in these rooms — bare windows fail.

Standard 11 (Window cord safety): Any corded covering must have anchors. This applies to every room, not just bedrooms and living areas.

Standard 12 (Window latches): All openable external windows must have a functional latch to secure them against entry and hold them open or closed.

A property with curtains in the bedroom (Standard 10 satisfied), no cord anchors on the curtain drawcords (Standard 11 failed), and working latches on all windows (Standard 12 satisfied) is still non-compliant overall because one standard failure is enough.

Evidence and Records

Compliant evidence includes a handyman or tradesperson invoice showing the installation, or dated photographs of the installed anchors. Under the Section 65F record-keeping rules, retain this evidence for at least seven years.

For self-managing landlords, photographing every window with its cord anchor before advertising is the simplest way to build the compliance file. Include the photos in your condition report.

The Penalty

Renting a property with non-compliant window cords breaches Section 65A (up to 60 penalty units / $12,546 for individuals in FY 2026–27). Advertising it breaches Section 65B (another 60 penalty units). For a fix that costs less than $20 in materials and ten minutes per window, the exposure is wildly disproportionate to the effort of getting it right.

The Rental Minimum Standards in Victoria guide covers all 15 minimum standards including the window safety requirements, with a room-by-room audit approach that catches cord anchors, coverings, and latches in one pass.

See more Victoria guides →