Tenants evicted, locked out: Consumer Council highlights rental complaints

Families with children are being locked out of rental homes without warning, tenants are losing bond money and some landlords are disconnecting water and electricity as housing disputes continue to rise across Fiji.

The growing rental crisis was highlighted by the Consumer Council of Fiji during submissions to the Standing Committee on Social Affairs last Friday, where landlord and tenancy complaints were identified as one of the country’s leading consumer issues.

Consumer Council chief executive officer Seema Shandil said the council continued to receive increasing complaints involving illegal evictions, missing tenancy agreements, rent increases and landlords refusing to issue receipts.

“Sometimes there is a family with children, and all of a sudden they are locked out,” Ms Shandil said.

“And sometimes the utilities also get disconnected.”

She said many tenants moved into rental homes based on trust, only to later discover there were no proper agreements in place to protect them.

Ms Shandil revealed landlord and tenancy disputes were now among the highest complaints received by the council, often competing with food and drink complaints as the top issue each quarter.

The issue drew strong reactions from committee members, with Opposition MP Praveen Bala questioning whether enough was being done to educate people in rural and maritime communities about their rights as tenants.

Committee chairperson Iliesa Vanawalu also questioned what solutions were being considered to address the growing problem.

In response, Ms Shandil said Fiji urgently needed a proper Landlord and Tenancy Act to protect both landlords and tenants.

She said the Consumer Council had repeatedly pushed for the law through national budget submissions, but the proposed bill had yet to be implemented.

“When we get both parties on the table, it becomes very hard to resolve complaints because there’s nothing to regulate or guide the process,” she said.

Ms Shandil also warned that the high cost of living continued to place pressure on ordinary families, with the council now closely monitoring possible increases in food prices following recent fuel hikes.