Retail Shop Leases Act 1994

This Act may be cited as the Retail Shop Leases Act 1994.

The main object of this Act is to promote efficiency and equity in the conduct of certain retail businesses in Queensland.

The main object of this Act is to be achieved through—

mandatory minimum standards for retail shop leases; and

a low cost dispute resolution process for retail tenancy disputes.

The dictionary in the schedule defines particular words used in this Act.

A retail shop lease is a lease of a retail shop.

However, a retail shop lease does not include a lease of any of the following—

a retail shop with a floor area of more than 1,000m²;

a retail shop within the South Bank corporation area if the lease is entered into or granted by the South Bank Corporation and is either—

a perpetual lease; or

another lease for a term, including renewal options, of at least 100 years;

premises used wholly or predominantly for the carrying on of a business by a lessee for a lessor as the lessor’s employee or agent;

premises in a theme or amusement park;

premises at a flea market, including an arts and crafts market;

a temporary retail stall at—

an agricultural or trade show; or

a carnival, festival or cultural event;

premises that, if the premises were not leased, would be premises within a common area of a retail shopping centre, but only if the premises are used for 1 or more of the following—

an information, entertainment, community or leisure facility;

telecommunication equipment;

an automatic teller machine;

a vending machine;

an advertisement display;

storage;

parking.

Also, a retail shop lease does not include a lease of premises located in a retail shopping centre if—

the premises are not used wholly or predominantly for carrying on a retail business; and

at the time the lease is entered into, either—

if the premises are located on a level of a multi-level building—the retail area of the level is 25% or less of the total lettable area of the level; or

if the premises are located in a single level building—the retail area of the building is 25% or less of the total lettable area of the building.

Examples for paragraph (b)—

1 A lease of premises for an accounting practice on level 4 of a retail shopping centre is not a retail shop lease if, at the time the lease is entered into, 75% of the total lettable area of level 4 is used wholly for professional or commercial offices.

2 A lease of premises for a medical centre in a stand-alone single level building within the parking area of a retail shopping centre is not a retail shop lease if, at the time the lease is entered into, 80% of the total lettable area of the building is used wholly for providing medical services.

The retail area, for a level or building in a retail shopping centre, is the area of the level or building comprising premises used wholly or predominantly for carrying on retail businesses.

The total lettable area, for a level or building in a retail shopping centre, is the total area of all the premises of the level or building that are—

leased or occupied; or

available for lease or occupation.

Retail shop means premises that are—

situated in a retail shopping centre; or

used wholly or predominantly for the carrying on of a retail business.

Retail business means a business prescribed by regulation as a retail business.

A retail shopping centre is a cluster of premises having all of the following attributes—

5 or more of the premises are used wholly or predominantly for carrying on retail businesses;

all the premises—

are owned by the 1 person; or

have the 1 lessor or head lessor, or, if the premises were leased, would have the 1 lessor or head lessor; or

comprise lots within a single community titles scheme under the Body Corporate and Community Management Act 1997;

all the premises are located in—

1 building; or

2 or more buildings if—

the buildings are adjoining; or

if the premises are owned by the 1 person—the buildings are separated by common areas or other areas owned by the owner or a road; or

if the premises are not owned by the 1 person—the buildings are separated by common areas or a road;

the cluster of premises is promoted, or generally regarded, as constituting a shopping centre, shopping mall, shopping court or shopping arcade.

Common areas of a retail shopping centre are areas in or adjacent to the centre that are used, or intended for use—

by the public; or

in common by the lessees of premises in the centre in relation to the conduct of businesses in premises in the centre.

Common areas include—

stairways, escalators and elevators; and

malls and walkways; and

parking areas; and

toilets and rest rooms; and

gardens and fountains; and

information, entertainment, community and leisure facilities.

However, common areas do not include leased areas.

A lessor’s outgoings for a retail shopping centre or leased building are—

the lessor’s reasonable expenses directly attributable to the operation, maintenance or repair of the centre or building and areas (associated areas) used in association with the centre or building; and

charges, levies, premiums, rates or taxes payable by the lessor because the lessor is the owner or occupier of—

the centre or building; or

the land on which the centre or building is situated; and

an amount mentioned in section 24A(2).

An outgoing mentioned in subsection (1) may be either an apportionable outgoing or a specific outgoing and the sum of the apportionable outgoings and specific outgoings is the lessor’s outgoings.

However, lessor’s outgoings do not include—

land tax payable on the land on which the centre or building is situated; and

expenditure of a capital nature, including the amortisation of capital costs; and

contributions to a depreciation or sinking fund; and

insurance premiums for loss of profits; and

payment of an excess in relation to a claim on the lessor’s insurance policy for the centre or building or associated areas; and

lessor’s contributions to merchants’ associations and centre promotion funds; and

payment of interest and charges on amounts borrowed by the lessor.

Examples for subsection (3)(b)—

1 Costs and expenses of or incidental to the building or extension of, or major improvement of a structural nature to, the centre or building or associated areas, are expenditure of a capital nature.

2 Replacement costs of major items of plant and equipment in the centre or building are expenditures of a capital nature.

Turnover of a business carried on in a leased shop is the gross sales of the business for any particular period.

However, turnover of a business carried on in a leased shop does not include the following amounts—

the net amount of discounts reasonably and properly allowed to customers in the usual course of business;

losses incurred in the resale or disposal of goods reasonably and properly purchased from customers as trade-ins in the usual course of business;

amounts of uncollected credit accounts written off by the lessee;

cash or credit refunds allowed on sales that have previously been included as gross receipts if the goods sold are returned and the sales cancelled;

fees for services refunded in whole or part if the fees have previously been included as gross receipts;

amounts of instalments refunded to customers for cancelled lay-by transactions;

taxes, including GST, imposed on the purchase price or cost of hire of goods or services at the point of sale or hire;

delivery charges;

the value of goods exchanged between 2 or more of the lessee’s shops if the exchange is made solely for the convenient conduct of the lessee’s business and not for concluding a sale made at or from the leased shop;

the value of goods returned to shippers, wholesalers or manufacturers;

amounts received from the sale of the lessee’s fixtures and fittings from the leased shop;

amounts received from sales made on a commission basis (other than commission on the sales).Examples of sales made on a commission basis—lottery sales, postage stamp sales, public transport ticket sales, telephone card sales

A note in the text of this Act is part of this Act.