Policy: Internet, Wi-Fi and Foxtel Management

Company Position:

Property Providers’ vision is to “Help People Live Better” by being Sydney’s most flexible residential rental company. This vision is driven by three core values; Passion, Performance and Partnership. Importantly, we seek profit not through dollars and cents but through the pursuit of partnership through our guiding principle that all meaningful long-term partnerships have a strong foundation of mutual investment, respect, risk and commitment. We aim to create these virtues in all our relationships and touch points with long-term leasing tenants, short-term rental guests, employees, suppliers, partners and our property owner partners.

Document Purpose:

The purpose of this document is to clearly communicate Property Providers’ policy as it relates to the management of Internet, Wi-Fi and Foxtel subscriptions for guests staying at our managed properties.

Background:

We know that no matter where you are it is a priority to have a reliable internet connection (especially when travelling or while in transition). Unfortunately, technology, infrastructure and service providers are intrinsically more complicated than it may initially appear. With vast experience managing thousands of guests/tenants in hundreds of properties, we have learned the best ways to realistically manage the internet and Foxtel. We understand the ripple effects disruption to these services has on everyone (i.e. guest experience, agency morale and owner’s tolerance/patience). Considering all of this we have developed the following policy.

Policy Objectives:

To be clear, concise, consistent, reasonable and fair about Property Providers’ position and capabilities and effectively manage expectations regarding what we will and will not do.
To ensure that we will do what we can within our circle of control to provide our guests with an internet connection while they are staying at their short-term property.
To minimise frustration and conflict between all parties by providing fast and practical solutions.
To minimise costs (i.e. time, money and other resources) to all parties.

Agency Policy:

Resolving a disruption to Internet WI-FI is a technical function and requires specialised expertise. It is considered outside the general scope of property management.
Property Providers will invest up to two (2) office hours to troubleshoot the problem over the phone.
If the agency is requested to attend the property in person and the issue is resolved through simple standard resetting and troubleshooting, the guest will be charged a call-out fee for the agency’s time. If an external trade is engaged to resolve the problem and the fault is deemed to be user(s) or device-related, the guest will be liable for these costs. Importantly, if the issue is related to the account or the hardware in the property it will be the property owner’s responsibility.
If the agency is requested to attend the property in person and the issue is resolved through simple/standard resetting or troubleshooting, the guest will be charged for a call-out fee for Property Providers’ time.
If this is not successful, the guest will be invited to collect a mobile 4G device from our office.
This device will be provided with 45GB of data loaded onto the dongle with an expiry date of 28 days.
Guests are expected to return the dongle in full at the end of their stay – this includes the box, the charger and any other information that came with the dongle. Failure to return the dongle to our office in full will result in a $200 charge from the guest’s security deposit.
If the broadband is fixed during the stay and the guest has been using a temporary dongle, the guest will be required to bring the dongle back to the office as they no longer have use for it.
The guest will be refunded the Internet/Wi-Fi fee for every day that the internet is not available given that it is not a user error and an alternative internet device is not provided.
If a mobile device (dongle) is provided and is required to be recharged with credit by Property Providers, the guest accepts that this will not happen outside of business hours.
Alternatively, if a dongle has been provided, guests are able to charge the device themselves (within reason) and send us the receipt for reimbursement of the charge if it exceeds the amount they have paid for their internet fees.
Please note that we will authorise recharging dongles within reason. If a guest is using an obscene amount of data a day, we will not continue to constantly top up the data allowance. Do take note that 45GB should last 28 days. If the internet dongle usage exceeds the funds that the guest has paid for the internet, the guest will be responsible for administering and paying for the top-up of the dongle with data that they require. And/or the agency reserves the right to deduct funds from the security deposit as required. Any excess data paid onto the dongle will be forfeited.
Although we recognise its importance, connection to the internet is not considered an essential service within the Land Stock and Agents Act (i.e. unlike electricity or water) and is not a valid reason for compensation, cancellation or disruption of peaceful enjoyment.

Rationale:

This policy supports our overall terms of business which is outlined in our Terms and Conditions ( PT 3.13)
The properties that we manage are individual investor-owned properties that are not in a centralized location. Therefore, each property has different modem/router hardware setups, service providers (i.e. Telstra, Optus, Vodafone etc) and different accounts. We are often unable to access these accounts due to Australian Privacy Laws. The result is a very challenging set of circumstances where there are elements that are often out of our circle of control and influence.
Property Managers are not adequately qualified to diagnose and resolve technical problems and although may have the best intentions can inadvertently create a deeper, more complex set of issues that cost more to resolve.
Our owners/landlords are regularly overseas and connecting with them is difficult. As a result (i.e. different phone numbers, time zones etc). Internet connectivity is not as reliable in Australia as it may be in other countries. There are often network outages that are out of our control. Check coverage via an internet providers website (Telstra: https://outages.telstra.com.au/#).
Property Providers has made available common troubleshooting techniques on our website for guests to self-resolve. See Wi-Fi/Internet Trouble Shooting Link. We communicate our troubleshooting tips to guests who advise that the internet connection at the rental property has ceased. If the service is not restored after trying all the suggested tips, we will contact the owner to ask them to call their internet service provider to check on their account and internet access and respond to us with the status of their account.
We are not an internet service provider. We do not have any access, oversight, management or technical experience in relation to the internet/Wi-Fi connections at our owner’s properties. We simply help guests to troubleshoot when issues occur, and we contact the owner directly should the troubleshooting tips not resolve the connection issue.
With a high percentage of guests who come from overseas, they have varying setups on a wide range of devices. It is not realistic for the staff at the agency to understand how these complex devices work.
We provide executive and corporate rentals for professionals who often work for large corporations which have highly advanced firewalls and security features that Property Managers cannot be expected to understand or manage.
We have found that it is often in the best interest of all parties to provide an immediate workable solution that will allow basic access to the internet than to battle for extended periods of time to resolve the in-home connections.
We have found that in some cases, tenants/guests become offensive to our staff in relation to Internet/Wi-Fi challenges. Although we really do understand how people may become frustrated, Property Providers cannot/will not tolerate or respond to abusive behaviour.

Effective Date: This policy is effective July 1^st 2018