00:00Katie Jolly has been through the ringer.
00:05I've lost sleep. I've been curled up on the couch just absolutely wanting this to end.
00:11The Moreton Bay resident was told the only way she could pay her rent was via the ALO app, but she refused.
00:18We felt rather coerced into using a third party app that does commercialise data.
00:27We did some research into this last year, spoke to over a thousand people who rent or who had applied for a rental
00:33and we found that over 40% of them had felt pressured into using a third party rental app.
00:40The apps are typically marketed as a one stop shop for renters for things including applications, payments and property maintenance requests.
00:49Some have fees associated and require large amounts of personal information to be held online.
00:56People shouldn't have to pay money to pay their rent. Their rent is their rent, they shouldn't have to pay money on top of it.
01:01We'd like to see some much stronger protections around the types of data that they're allowed to collect and for how long they're allowed to hold it.
01:09In a statement, ALO says there is a fee-free option within the app and has comprehensive security and data protection protocols.
01:18For Ms Jolly, she's worried her objection will affect ongoing rental prospects.
01:23I'm freaked out about thinking about the future and having to apply when I know that such rent tech apps are becoming ubiquitous.
01:31The Residential Tenancies Authority says the use of third party platforms is increasing across Queensland.
01:38Recently legislated rental reforms will require tenants to be offered two ways to pay rent, including one that doesn't incur costs and is reasonably available.
01:48But it's unclear when those will come into effect.
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