Offering accommodation for major special events

If you are a property agent offering accommodation for major special events, such as Schoolies Week, The Brisbane International or The Gold Coast 600, you must not have special rules for guests who are there for the event.

This means:

you can’t impose special rules for the duration of an event
you must not selectively apply rules to certain guests and not to others.

Misleading information

It’s against the law to mislead consumers by making incorrect statements or providing information that is likely to create a false impression. This includes the location of accommodation or travel times to events.

Bookings

When taking a guest booking, you should:

ask property owners early about whether they will allow you to let their properties during an event
only let out rooms the property owners have made available (this includes via third-party booking agents)
clearly outline the house rules and terms and conditions when first taking an enquiry
make sure third-party booking agents know your current rules.

If you cancel a guest’s booking, you will need to do one of the following:

refund all payments made by the guest, including the deposit
give the guest accommodation of at least an equal standard
offer the guest a lower standard of accommodation and compensate them for the difference in value.

The guest has the right to select which option they prefer. If they choose to cancel, you must let them do so without penalty.

Your usual conditions—which you must have clearly outlined when bookings are made—should apply if the guest cancels their booking, including any fees or charges.

Security deposit

You may charge a security deposit during a special event, but you must apply it to all guests. You should:

add the security deposit to the terms and conditions
outline the deposit terms to the guest before they make a booking
tell guests how to retrieve the security deposit after their stay
have a procedure to resolve disputes and complaints about deposits
immediately put the deposit into your trust account
give a trust account receipt to the guest.

If you decide to withhold a guest’s security deposit, within 48 hours of the day the guest checks out you must put it in writing and:

clearly outline how you worked out the amount
include copies of the quotes and the invoice for repairs
explain their options if they want to raise a dispute.

When working out how much of the security deposit to withhold:

get various quotes for any repairs and use them as a guide
negotiate with the guest about what is a fair amount to withhold.

Disputes and complaints

You should consider your procedure to handle disputes or complaints. We recommend that a complaints-handling procedure should outline:

how a guest can lodge a complaint (verbally or in writing)
who should receive the complaint
how you will investigate and respond to the complaint.

Developing a complaints procedure

When you develop your procedure, we recommend that you:

read the guidelines for complaint handling and customer service from Standards Australia
involve your staff in developing the produce
decide who will handle complaints
prepare a standard form for complaints
anticipate some common complaints and decide how to resolve them.

To avoid problems with a new procedure during a special event period, you should:

trial the system before the special event
use guest and staff feedback to adjust any details.

Applying the complaints procedure

You should provide the following details to property owners and guests:

what the procedure covers
how to make a complaint
when a complaint must be in writing
when a complaint may be verbal
who will handle the complaint.

A good practice would be to:

consider and respond to every complaint
tell the property owner when a guest makes a complaint
tell them the outcome.

To make sure the procedure works smoothly, you should:

train all staff in how the procedure works
designate staff members who have the skills to handle complaints well
keep a record of all problems and complaints
analyse the records to identify major or ongoing issues.

Security guards

You may want to hire security guards and crowd controllers for special event periods. You will need to brief them on:

house rules
complaint handling
eviction procedures.

Make sure you:

discuss the option with the body corporate, including how to cover the extra cost
check the security licences of the security firm and individual officers
clearly establish with them how they are to protect the property and deal with guests.

House rules and terms and conditions

You must tell your guests about house rules, terms and conditions before they make a booking or payment. This includes any rules about room inspections, balcony and facility access.

Make sure:

your staff advise all potential guests about the rules before they make a booking
all third-party booking agents have the current version of your rules
you reiterate the rules to guests when checking in—consider getting a signature of acknowledgement for your records and leave a copy of the rules in the room.

Your house rules should be consistent for all guests during a special event period. Again, you must not have special rules that only apply to guests attending a special event.

Unfair terms

It’s illegal for any contract to have unfair terms. Make sure that your house rules do not have the potential to result in overly harsh penalties for guests.

Terms may be considered unfair if they:

don’t fairly divide the parties’ rights and obligations
are not necessary to protect your business interests
would cause loss to your customers.

The types of rules that may be harsh or unfair include:

random room inspections without the consent of guests
bag searches without the consent of the owner
banning external visitors or visitors in public areas
imposing a fee on a guest for breaking a rule (unless this fee relates to property damage).

Evictions

It may be unfair to set broad rules that you will evict guests for breaking. You should avoid evicting:

a guest who breaks minor rules
an entire party of guests because of 1 guest’s misbehaviour.

If you need to evict some guests, you can protect yourself by:

including written guidelines for eviction in your terms and conditions
evicting a guest only when other guests or property are at risk
issuing a warning before evicting guests if possible.

Room inspections

If you plan to conduct room inspections during a special event period you should:

include the inspection process in your house rules
outline it to guests when you take a booking and again when they check in
make consent to inspections a part of agreeing to your terms and conditions
ask your guests to sign a consent form
make sure the guest is present during inspections
apply the policy to guests all year round.

Bag checks

You may make bag checks a term of entry for staying at your premises, as long as you:

include it in the contract
clearly outline it to your guests
apply it to all guests.

You should always ask for the guest's consent to search their bag. If they give consent, you should always:

check a bag while its owner is present
ask guests to open their own bags and move any items themselves
have a private area to go if the guest doesn’t want to do it in front of others
try to have a witness present.

If the guest does not give consent, you cannot do the search. However, you can exercise any rights in the accommodation contract that you may have, which may include evicting the guest from the property.

Alcohol on premises

You should include your conditions about alcohol in your house rules. You must also obey all liquor laws under the Liquor Act 1992.

Common areas

It is illegal for anyone to drink alcohol or be drunk in a public place, including the common areas of your accommodation complex—this applies to adults and minors. Fines apply if you break this rule.

Licensed premises

If you have a liquor licence that covers a residential unit, underage people must not:

consume alcohol in your premises
possess any alcohol while staying there.

Fines apply if you break this rule.

Read more about compliance for liquor licensees.

Unlicensed premises

It is not illegal for underage people to consume or possess alcohol in the privacy of their own unit.

However, it is illegal for an adult to:

supply alcohol to a minor
not give responsible supervision to the minor.

Read more about supplying alcohol to under 18s.

Safety tips

You should also be aware of the safety measures and procedures in place to protect staff and guests.

Blinds and curtains

Make sure that any blind or curtain cords do not pose a strangulation risk to small children.

You must:

fit safety tassels or a cord tensioning device—such as cord holders—to hold the cord tight against a wall to make sure cords don’t form a loop
make sure children can’t reach any blind or curtain cords—keep beds, cots, playpens and other furniture away from blind and curtain cords
ensure the bottom of any blind or curtain cord is at least 160cm above the floor.

Read more about blind and curtain cord safety.

Bunk beds

If there are bunk beds in your units, make sure they are safe. For example, bunk beds should have:

no gaps that measure between 95mm and 230mm
no protrusions (such as screw heads or guardrail joints) of more than 5mm
guardrails on all sides of the top bunk
a securely attached ladder that gives safe access to and from the top bunk.
a distance of at least 2 metres between the top bunk and the ceiling fan
compliance with Australian Standard (AS/NZS 4220).

Fire safety

You are responsible for the safety of everyone in your complex, including in the event of a fire.

You must have:

working smoke alarms in all residential units
well-rehearsed evacuation plans.

Read more about the requirements for fire safety installations in buildings and work safety.

Hot water systems

Make sure there’s a hot water tempering device in the bathroom to stop the hot water temperature exceeding 50°C.

Portable cots

Make sure any portable cots you provide with your accommodation are safe by ensuring:

all sides and ends securely lock in place
the mesh is not torn or broken
it complies with the mandatory Australian standard (AS/NZS 2195)
you only provide the mattress that came with the portable cot
you never put extra mattresses or add extra bedding in the cot.

Toppling furniture

Make sure furniture is stable and safe—falling furniture can not only strike a child, but it can trap and crush them underneath.

Ensure you:

choose low-set furniture with a broad solid base and wide legs to keep them well balanced—they are less likely to tip if a small child climbs onto them
secure furniture to the wall to prevent it from tipping over—secure it using furniture straps, angle braces or anchors screwed into wall studs, which you can buy from a hardware store
secure televisions with anchor straps, which most TVs come with—you can use them to attach the TV to the wall or to another piece of furniture, like a TV stand or entertainment unit
choose tables that won’t tip over if a child climbs on them—glass tables should be made of toughened glass
use child-resistant locks on drawers—you should also consider locks for cupboards storing chemicals, cleaning fluids and other poisons.

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