Enforcement Process

Investigation Process

Opportunity to be Heard 

Financial Administrative Penalties

Investigation Process

When a landlord or renter files a complaint with the Compliance and Enforcement Unit, the unit may follow these steps, depending on the situation

If the complaint does not relate to a contravention or if the matter can be addressed through involvement of Residential Tenancy Branch information services or dispute resolution services, the unit will not take further action.

Once a Compliance Officer confirms that the complaint relates to a contravention of tenancy laws, they may contact the subject of the complaint and explain their rights and responsibilities under the Act.

A verbal warning may be issued to encourage compliance.

• The Compliance Officer will explain the potential consequences for not following the law.
• The Compliance Officer will open a file and may monitor the situation to ensure that the party complies with the warning.
• If compliance is not achieved the Party could face an immediate financial penalty for every day the contravention continues.

A Compliance officer may also refer the complaint for investigation which means:

• An Investigator may be assigned to the complaint
• A file will be opened and an investigation commenced.
• The Investigator may contact the parties involved examine the history of compliance, consult with other agencies including law enforcement, collect evidence, issue warning letters, compel the parties to produce any documents in relation to the investigation and, if necessary, recommend consideration of administrative financial penalties.

Opportunity to be heard

Before administrative financial penalties are applied, in all cases the unit will consider the seriousness of the infraction, how often it happened, what efforts were made to correct it and any financial benefit gained from the infraction.

Those facing administrative financial penalties will have an opportunity to review evidence against them and respond before a decision is made.

This will typically be in the form of a written submission due 21 days after being served with a notice from the unit. The notice will outline the alleged contravention or failure to comply, all evidence which supports the allegation, the amount of the penalty being considered, and the time-frame for responding. Failure to provide submissions or failure to appear when required by the notice will be considered a voluntary waiver of their right to be heard and the branch may proceed with levying an administrative penalty.

 

Financial Administrative Penalties: 

Should an administrative penalty be imposed, the person will be served with a notice of administrative penalty in the form of a decision and order that will specify the contravention or failure to which the penalty relates, the amount of the penalty and the date by which the penalty must be paid.

An administrative penalty is a debt due to government and must be paid within 60 days. Failure to pay will result in collection action being taken. In addition, the RTB may refuse to accept an application for dispute resolution if an outstanding penalty is owed.

For continued non-compliance, financial penalties of up to $5000 per contravention per day may be levied. In addition, if any financial penalties are not paid the RTB can refuse applications to dispute resolution. The RTB may also publish CEU decisions, information may include the name and address of the person or business, the nature of the contravention, and the amount of the penalty.

 

If you are the subject of a complaint and unsure what to do next: 

 Contact the Residential Tenancy Branch

 

The content on this website is periodically reviewed and updated by the Province of British Columbia as per the date noted on each page: March 15, 2023.