A significant portion of the population of British Columbia consists of renters. Legal services for tenants, such as those offered by the Tenant Resource & Advisory Centre (“TRAC”), are vital. Since 1984 this non-profit organization has provided free legal services for tenants and advocates across BC, particularly for economically vulnerable populations such as youth, seniors, and new immigrants.
Support from the Law Foundation of BC allows TRAC to offer a diverse range of services, information on tenancy rights and educational tools to people province-wide. Direct advocacy is an important aspect of TRAC’s work, and people facing critical issues such as eviction have greatly benefitted from TRAC’s services. Evictions are highly stressful situations. TRAC advocates need to be able to respond quickly to dispute eviction notices and in many cases are able to negotiate with landlords in order to prevent homelessness. Through the Law Foundation’s advocacy grant, TRAC has been able to increase staffing so that more people needing direct advocacy can be assisted.
Like many organizations, the pandemic has impacted how TRAC delivers its services. TRAC offers digital education and online resources to the communities it serves. Since March 2020, the workshops it offers have become entirely web-based. While in-person direct advocacy meetings have ceased, Zoom calls and phone calls have seamlessly replaced them for most clients. The pandemic has also increased TRAC’s workload, including a 27% increase in calls to the Tenant Infoline. Eviction is the top reason tenants contact TRAC, and this has held true during the pandemic.
“TRAC is a small organization with a large mandate, and I’m really proud of the way our team has grown over recent years to better meet the high demand for our services,” says TRAC’s Executive Director, Andrew Sakamoto. “No other non-profit in the province offers our range of free legal programs — from basic information and referrals through our Tenant Infoline and online courses, to full representation services at the Residential Tenancy Branch and BC Supreme Court. Tenant education and advocacy is more important than ever, and we will continue to find ways to expand our services and better fulfill our mandate of enhancing legal protections for anyone renting their home in British Columbia.”
To learn more about TRAC and its services, please visit their website: tenants.bc.ca