Renters in Australia are being exposed to temperatures below those recommended by the World Health Organisation, according to a new study.
Conducted by tenant advocacy group Better Renting, the study saw 75 households across both capital cities and regional areas in all states and territories track and report temperatures in their property in June and July.
Across all households, temperatures were below 18 degrees 75 per cent of the time, Better Renting reported.
Participants were provided a device capable of tracking temperature and humidity at one-minute intervals and were asked to position the tracker in their home wherever the cold was most relevant to them.
The WHO recommended minimum temperature for houses in countries with temperate or colder climates is 18 degrees Celsius - "a safe and well-balanced indoor temperature to protect the health of general populations during cold seasons".
Substandard buildings to blame
Better Renting executive director, Joel Dignam, said that the substandard construction of rental properties was to blame for low temperatures.
"Everyone in Australia should have a home that is warm and dry in winter, that keeps them and their family safe. But renters are missing out," he said
"Draughty, uninsulated rental homes force temperatures down and power bills up. Renters [participating in the study] told us about getting sick more often, about a constant state of worry over energy costs, and an unending battle against mould and damp."
Orange renter and study participant Kayla Clanchy said that her home has been freezing this winter, particularly in her uninsulated bathroom.
Her rental recorded a minimum temperature of 3.6 degrees and recorded a temperature of less than 18 degrees 99 per cent of the time, according to the study.
She said that she and her partner had been forced to cut back on driving and petrol to afford to heat their home.
"We have paid $1000-plus through May to July to feed the woodfire heater. We have no alternative. The alternative being a home that gets as low as 3 degrees Celsius," she said.
"We just pay it, and then scrimp and save elsewhere. We burn tissues, pages of old books, shoe boxes for kindling.
"We eat two meals a day. I don't drive anywhere to save on fuel, which, in a country town in the depths of winter, is a hard slog."
Humidity issues
The study found that NSW had the highest average humidity of any jurisdiction, with 83 per cent of recordings above 60 per cent relative humidity, and over half of recordings above 70 per cent relative humidity.
Tasmania had the greatest proportion of time below 18°C, 91 per cent or over 21 hours per day. The state also had the highest rate of entire days below 18 degrees at 61.5 per cent.
ACT had the lowest average minimum temperature of any jurisdiction, 7.4 degrees and the second-highest amount of time below 18 degrees at 88.3 per cent of the day.
