The NRA has secured an interim authorisation from the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission for its members, in their capacity as either Tenants or Landlords, to share information and undertake collective bargaining measures with respect to easing the impact of COVID-19 on their commercial leasing arrangements.
The authorisation allows NRA members to engage in conduct, with other NRA members, which would otherwise be unlawful with respect to their commercial leasing arrangements, including:
- sharing information tenant-to-tenant about how the COVID-19 pandemic has affected their business and the precincts in which they operate, the kind of information and actions being requested by landlords, and the positions taken by landlords with respect to rent negotiations;
- sharing information landlord-to-landlord about the nature of the difficulties being faced by their SME tenants, and which SME tenants or classes of SME tenant would benefit most from rent relief;
- in the case of tenants – engaging in collective negotiations with landlords with respect to rent relief, including around the extent of information required to be shared;
- in the case of landlords – provisionally enter in agreements about the nature of extent of rent relief to be provided to SME tenants or classes of SME tenants.
This conduct is bound by strict limitations, and it is important the NRA members understand these limitations so that they maintain the protection afforded by the authorisation.
The NRA is hosting two roundtables via Zoom – one covering Tenants and one covering Landlords – to explain the authorisation in more depth so that our members are more confident in engaging in the relevant conduct.
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