Water Efficiency Measures For Rental Properties Are Changing 23 March 2020

Currently, for a landlord to be able to pass on water usage charges to a tenant, the residential property must be separately metered, the charges must not exceed the amount payable by the landlord (according to the water supplier’s bill or other evidence), and the property must meet water efficiency measures.

A rental property is only considered water efficient prior to 23 March 2020 if it meets the following standards:

Source: NSW Fair Trading

This flow rate does not apply to other taps in the premises including bathtub taps, laundry taps, outside taps for the garden, or taps for washing machines and dishwashers.

New laws regarding water efficiency come into effect from 23 March 2020 which additionally require:

• All taps and toilets on the property must be checked at the start of a tenancy to ensure any leaks are fixed
  
• Taps and toilets must also be checked whenever any other water efficiency measures are installed, repaired or upgraded and any leaks fixed
  

This requirement applies to existing and new tenancy agreements from 23 March 2020.

There is also plenty of advance warning of an additional water efficiency measure which applies from 23 March 2025:

• From 23 March 2025 all toilets in rented properties must be dual flush with a minimum 3-star rating in accordance with the Commonwealth Water Efficiency Labelling and Standards (WELS) scheme. 

Landlords who intend to replace or upgrade existing toilets in their property should consider installing dual flush toilets with a minimum 3-star WELS rating to meet the water efficiency requirements by 23 March 2025.