Tenant’s Rights of Entry, Quiet Enjoyment, and Privacy (19:IX): Difference between revisions

Latest revision as of 08:15, 30 August 2024

This information applies to British Columbia, Canada. Last reviewed for legal accuracy by the Law Students' Legal Advice Program on August 15, 2024.

A. Landlord’s Limited Right of Entry

A landlord is prohibited from entering their rental unit when it is subject to a tenancy agreement except in the following circumstances:

the tenant gives either written or verbal consent to enter for a specific purpose one month or less prior to entry, including when the tenant consents at the time of entry (RTA, s 29(1)(a));
the tenant receives written notice of entry between 24 hours and 30 days before the time of entry (RTA, s 29(1)(b)), with the time of receipt depending on the method of service as established in section 90 of the RTA and with the entry complying with the following requirements:
- the written notice specifies the purpose for entering, which must be reasonable (RTA, s 29(1)(b)(i));
- the written notice states the date and time of entry, which must be between 8:00 AM and 9:00 PM unless the tenant otherwise agrees (RTA, s 29(1)(b)(ii));
- it has been at least one month since the landlord last inspected the unit using this method (RTA, s 29(2));
the landlord provides housekeeping or related services as part of the written tenancy agreement and the entry is for this purpose in accordance with the terms (RTA, s 29(1)(c));
the landlord has an RTB order authorizing the entry (RTA, s 29(1)(d));
the tenant has abandoned the rental unit (RTA, s 29(1)(e)); or
an emergency exists and the entry is necessary to protect life or property (RTA, s 29(1)(f)).

B. Tenant’s Right to Quiet Enjoyment

A tenant has the right to quiet enjoyment (RTA, s 28), which includes but is not limited to:

reasonable privacy (RTA, s 28(a));
freedom from unreasonable disturbance (RTA, s 28(b));
exclusive possession of the rental unit subject only to the landlord’s right to enter the rental unit in accordance with section 29 (RTA, s 28(c)); and
use of the common area for reasonable and lawful purposes, free from significant interference (RTA, s 28(d)).

Landlords have a duty to protect their tenants’ rights to quiet enjoyment (RTB PG 6), and to not interfere with that right themselves (RTA, s 7). A landlord may be liable to compensate a tenant for breach of quiet enjoyment even if they were not the cause of a breach, if the tenant can establish that the landlord was aware of the problem and failed to take reasonable steps to correct it (RTB PG 6). If a landlord interferes with a tenant’s right to quiet enjoyment by repeatedly entering a rental unit in a manner not in accordance with the RTA, the tenant may apply for an order to be permitted to change the locks in the rental unit, and to be permitted to not provide the landlord with a key (RTA, s 70).

While tenants have a right to quiet enjoyment, they also have a duty not to disturb other tenants so as to not breach their right to quiet enjoyment. A landlord may end a tenancy for cause with one month’s notice if a tenant significantly interfered with unreasonably disturbs other occupants or the landlord of the building (RTA, s 47 (d)(i)).

C. Duty to Provide Access

Once a tenant has taken possession of a rental unit, a landlord is not allowed to unreasonably restrict access to the residential property by the tenant or someone they permit onto the residential tenancy (RTA, s 30(1)); therefore, a landlord cannot unreasonably restrict a tenant’s guests.

The landlord cannot change the locks or alter the means of access to the rental unit without the tenant’s permission, and a landlord is obligated to provide the tenant with new keys or other means of access to the rental unit (RTA, s 31(1.1)). On the request of a tenant at the beginning of a new tenancy agreement, the landlord must rekey or change the locks to the rental unit (RTA, s 25). A landlord cannot restrict access even if a tenant has failed to pay rent.

1. Tenants: Changing the Locks

Tenants must not change the locks giving access to common areas without the permission of the landlord (RTA, s 31(2)). Tenants also must not change the locks or other means of giving access to their unit without the landlord’s written permission or an order from the RTB (RTA, s 31(3)). Breach of these rules may be grounds for eviction.

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-{{REVIEWED LSLAP | date= July 1, 2022}}
+{{REVIEWED LSLAP | date= August 15, 2024}}
 {{LSLAP Manual TOC|expanded = landlord}}
-== '''A. Right of Entry''' ==
+== A. Landlord’s Limited Right of Entry ==
-Section 29 of the ''RTA'' provides that a landlord may not enter a rental unit except where:
+A landlord is prohibited from entering their rental unit when it is subject to a tenancy agreement except in the following circumstances:
+*the tenant gives either written or verbal consent to enter for a specific purpose one month or less prior to entry, including when the tenant consents at the time of entry (''RTA'', s 29(1)(a));
+*the tenant receives written notice of entry between 24 hours and 30 days before the time of entry (''RTA'', s 29(1)(b)), with the time of receipt depending on the method of service as established in section 90 of the ''RTA'' and with the entry complying with the following requirements:
+**the written notice specifies the purpose for entering, which must be reasonable (''RTA'', s 29(1)(b)(i));
+**the written notice states the date and time of entry, which must be between 8:00 AM and 9:00 PM unless the tenant otherwise agrees (''RTA'', s 29(1)(b)(ii));
+**it has been at least one month since the landlord last inspected the unit using this method (''RTA'', s 29(2));
+*the landlord provides housekeeping or related services as part of the written tenancy agreement and the entry is for this purpose in accordance with the terms (''RTA'', s 29(1)(c));
+*the landlord has an RTB order authorizing the entry (''RTA'', s 29(1)(d));
+*the tenant has abandoned the rental unit (''RTA'', s 29(1)(e)); or
+*an emergency exists and the entry is necessary to protect life or property (''RTA'', s 29(1)(f)).
-*an emergency exists and the entry is necessary to protect life or property;
+== B. Tenant’s Right to Quiet Enjoyment ==
-*the tenant gives either written or verbal consent to enter for a specific purpose one month or less prior to entry, including when the tenant consents at the time of entry
-*the landlord provides housekeeping or related services as part of the written tenancy agreement and the entry is for this purpose in accordance with the terms
-*the tenant abandons the rental unit;
-*the landlord gives written notice of entry for a specified “reasonable purpose” between 30 days and at least 24 hours before the time of entry (s 29(1)(b)).
-**The landlord must arrange a specific time between 8 a.m. and 9 p.m. to enter unless otherwise agreed by the tenant.
-**Note that the clock starts ticking when the tenant receives the notice to enter, not the time when the landlord gives it. The 24 hours starts right away when a landlord hand-delivers the notice; 3 days later when it is delivered by fax or by posting on the tenant’s door, or five days later when sent by regular or registered mail, unless earlier received; or
-**The landlord has an Arbitrator’s order authorizing the entry.
-== '''B. Quiet Enjoyment''' ==
+A tenant has the right to quiet enjoyment (''RTA'', s 28), which includes but is not limited to:
+*reasonable privacy (''RTA'', s 28(a));
+*freedom from unreasonable disturbance (''RTA'', s 28(b));
+*exclusive possession of the rental unit subject only to the landlord’s right to enter the rental unit in accordance with section 29 (''RTA'', s 28(c)); and
+*use of the common area for reasonable and lawful purposes, free from significant interference (''RTA'', s 28(d)).
-Section 28 of the ''RTA'' provides protection of tenant’s right to quiet enjoyment. A tenant’s right includes but is not limited to:
+Landlords have a duty to protect their tenants’ rights to quiet enjoyment (RTB PG 6), and to not interfere with that right themselves (''RTA'', s 7). A landlord may be liable to compensate a tenant for breach of quiet enjoyment even if they were not the cause of a breach, if the tenant can establish that the landlord was aware of the problem and failed to take reasonable steps to correct it (RTB PG 6). If a landlord interferes with a tenant’s right to quiet enjoyment by repeatedly entering a rental unit in a manner not in accordance with the ''RTA'', the tenant may apply for an order to be permitted to change the locks in the rental unit, and to be permitted to not provide the landlord with a key (''RTA'', s 70).
-#reasonable privacy;
+While tenants have a right to quiet enjoyment, they also have a duty not to disturb other tenants so as to not breach their right to quiet enjoyment. A landlord may end a tenancy for cause with one month’s notice if a tenant significantly interfered with unreasonably disturbs other occupants or the landlord of the building (''RTA'', s 47 (d)(i)).
-#freedom from unreasonable disturbance;
-#exclusive possession of the rental unit subject only to the landlord’s right to enter the rental unit in accordance with s 29; and
-#use of the common area for reasonable and lawful purposes, free from significant interference.
-Landlords have a duty to protect their tenants’ rights to quiet enjoyment, and to not interfere with
+== C. Duty to Provide Access ==
-that right themselves. If a landlord interferes with a tenant’s right to quiet enjoyment by repeatedly
-entering a rental unit in a manner not in accordance with the RTA, the tenant may apply for an order
-to be permitted to change the locks in the rental unit, and to be permitted to not provide the landlord
-with a key: see ''RTA''
-While tenants have a right to quiet enjoyment, they also have a duty not to disturb other tenants. A
+Once a tenant has taken possession of a rental unit, a landlord is not allowed to unreasonably restrict access to the residential property by the tenant or someone they permit onto the residential tenancy (''RTA'', s 30(1)); therefore, a landlord cannot unreasonably restrict a tenant’s guests.
-landlord may end a tenancy for Cause with one month’s notice if a tenant unreasonably disturbs
-other occupants or the landlord of the building. This is separate from the right of quiet enjoyment
-and is a cause for a landlord to evict (RTA s 47 (d)(i)).
-== '''C. Duty to Provide Access''' ==
+The landlord cannot change the locks or alter the means of access to the rental unit without the tenant’s permission, and a landlord is obligated to provide the tenant with new keys or other means of access to the rental unit (''RTA'', s 31(1.1)). On the request of a tenant at the beginning of a new tenancy agreement, the landlord must rekey or change the locks to the rental unit (''RTA'', s 25). A landlord cannot restrict access even if a tenant has failed to pay rent.
-Under ''RTA'' s 30 (1)once a tenant has taken possession of a rental unit, a landlord is not allowed to unreasonably restrict the tenant’s access to the residential property.  Under s 31 of the ''RTA'', the landlord cannot change the locks or alter the means of access to the rental unit without the tenant’s permission, and a landlord is obligated to provide all tenants with new keys or other means of access to the rental unit. On the request of a tenant at the beginning of a new tenancy agreement, the landlord must re-key or change the locks to the rental unit: see '''Section IV: Moving In and Moving Out'''. A landlord cannot restrict access if a tenant has failed to pay rent.
+=== 1. Tenants: Changing the Locks ===
-=== 1. Tenant: Changing the Locks ===
+Tenants must not change the locks giving access to common areas without the permission of the landlord (''RTA'', s 31(2)). Tenants also must not change the locks or other means of giving access to their unit without the landlord’s written permission or an order from the RTB (''RTA'', s 31(3)). Breach of these rules may be grounds for eviction.
-If the landlord changes the locks in contravention of s 31 of the ''RTA'', the Arbitrator may grant an order authorizing the tenant to change the locks. Also, if a tenant applies for dispute resolution, an Arbitrator can grant permission to allow the tenant to change the locks, and give the tenant the right to withhold a copy of a key from the landlord if the Arbitrator is satisfied that the landlord may contravene s 31.  It should be noted that a tenant changing a lock without landlord permission or an order can be grounds for eviction. To change the lock legally, the tenant must follow the procedure set out in ''RTA'', s 31(2).
+{{LSLAP Manual Navbox|type=chapters15-23}}
-== '''D. Cash Payment Rules''' ==
-Section 26(2) provides that a landlord must provide a tenant with a receipt for rent paid in cash. If a tenant makes a cash payment and receives no receipt, the tenant should send a letter to the landlord confirming the payment or pay with a witness present.
-== '''E. Personal Property: Non-Payment of Rent''' ==
-Whether or not a tenant pays rent in accordance with the tenancy agreement, a landlord must not seize any personal property of the tenant or prevent or interfere with the tenant’s access to the tenant’s personal property (RTA, s 26(3)). The only exceptions are if the landlord has a court order authorizing the action, or if the tenant has abandoned the rental unit and the landlord complies with the regulations: see RTA s 26 (4)(a) and (b).
-{{LSLAP Manual Navbox|type=chapters15-22}}