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When giving tenants notice that staff will be entering their unit, CCOC will specify a time of entry as “between 8:00 a.m. and 12:00 p.m.” or “between 12:00 p.m. and 4:00 p.m.”
The RTA covers the obligations of landlords to give notice when entering a tenant’s unit as follows:
(3) A landlord may enter the rental unit without written notice to show the unit to prospective tenants if,
(a) the landlord and tenant have agreed that the tenancy will be terminated or one of them has given notice of termination to the other;
(b) the landlord enters the unit between the hours of 8 a.m. and 8 p.m.; and
(c) before entering, the landlord informs or makes a reasonable effort to inform the tenant of the intention to do so. 2006, c. 17, s. 26 (3).
(3) The written notice under subsection (1) or (2) shall specify the reason for entry, the day of entry and a time of entry between the hours of 8 a.m. and 8 p.m. 2006, c. 17, s. 27 (3).
Maintenance Office staff estimate that when CCOC enters tenant units it is almost always at the tenant’s request, so that for approximately 90% of the time our staff go in, it is to perform work which the tenant has asked us to do.
The exceptions to this are mainly for the following:
When performing the work noted above, with the exception of emergencies, CCOC gives the tenant 24 hour written notice. Currently, the notice usually states that we will be entering the unit between 8:00 am to 4:00 p.m., although we are sometimes more specific when appointment times are know or requested. Under the new policy the notice will specify morning or afternoon. As a matter of procedure, we will continue to specify a time more closely whenever possible. This will depend on the type of work being performed, whether third party contractors or inspectors are involved, whether we are entering one, a few or all units in the same building.
The great majority of requests CCOC receives for repairs come by way of tenants calling the office. The person taking the call will ask for details of the work required and will usually ask: “Is it OK to go in if you’re not home?” If the person answers in the affirmative, this information is entered on the work order. If the tenant has a specific request around entry, staff will make appropriate accommodations and put a note on the work order. These requests might be related to a specific day/time, the fact that the unit has an alarm system, that there are pets to watch out for, or simply, the tenant wishes to be home. In some cases, the work order will be issued with a directive to give 24 hours written notice. If a tenant wishes to be home while the work they requested is being carried out, staff will make an appointment for a more specific day and time or will make a note on the work order for the maintenance staff to call the tenant. In the future, again as a matter of procedure, the question regarding entry will be followed by: “… or do you require 24-hour written notice?”(or similar phrase) to alert the tenant to the possible option available and allow him/her the opportunity to make a decision on the matter, particularly if the work is not expected to be undertaken in the immediate future
Approved by the Board July 2000.
