Estate Visitor Pre-Registration: How Resident Invites and Access Codes Work, and How to Set Them Up

What is visitor pre-registration?

Visitor pre-registration means a resident registers a guest with the estate before the guest arrives. The guard then knows who to expect and does not have to phone the house.

Most systems use an access code. The resident creates an invite, the system issues a code, and the guest shows it at the gate. Zamatrack's visitor pre-registration system runs this through a client app for residents and a guard app at the gate. For a wider look at estate gate systems, see our estate visitor management guide.

How does pre-registration with access codes work at the gate?

A typical visit has six steps, from the invite to the record.

1. The resident creates an invite. In the client app, the resident sets up an invite for the guest, for today or a future date.
2. The system issues an access code. The resident shares the code with the guest.
3. The guest arrives and shows the code. The guard checks the code on the guard app.
4. The guard validates the code and logs the entry. If the estate scans licences or vehicle discs too, the guard does that now.
5. The resident is notified. The resident gets an arrival notification, and the visit appears in the on-site view.
6. The visit stays in the history. Managers can review it later, for example after a complaint or an incident.

Illustrative example: a resident expects a plumber on Thursday morning and two dinner guests on Saturday. On Monday she creates three invites. The plumber's code is checked at 08:10 on Thursday and his licence is scanned. Her guests show their code on Saturday evening, and she gets an arrival notification while they drive in.

How do you set up visitor pre-registration at an estate?

Agree the rules before you load a single resident. Most problems after go-live are rule problems, not software problems.

1. List your visitor types. Social guests, domestic workers, garden services, contractors, deliveries and estate agents often need different rules.
2. Decide the code rules. Who may issue codes, for which dates, and how long a recurring invite may run before it is reviewed.
3. Decide the fallback. What the guard does when a visitor has no code, a wrong code or a code for another day.
4. Write the POPIA notices. One for residents who use the app, and one for visitors whose details residents enter.
5. Update the house rules. Put the code rules, the fallback and resident responsibilities into the estate rules, through the proper process.
6. Load residents and train guards. Register each household on the client app. Train every guard on the guard app and the fallback rule.
7. Run a pilot. Start with one gate or one phase of the estate, fix the gaps, then roll out.

What house rules should cover pre-registration?

The rules should tell residents what they may do with codes and tell guards what to do when something does not match. The table gives example wording to adapt.

How you adopt the rules depends on the type of scheme. In a sectional title scheme, conduct rules fall under section 10 of the Sectional Titles Schemes Management Act. They can be changed by special resolution of the body corporate, and must be reasonable and apply equally to all owners.

A change must be lodged with the chief ombud, and it comes into operation when the ombud issues a certificate. The rules bind owners and anyone occupying a section, and the body corporate must give a copy to each new owner or occupier. Estates run by a homeowners' association follow the process in their own governing documents. This is a summary, not legal advice.

What POPIA notice do you need when residents register guests?

You need two: one for residents who use the app, and one for the guests they register. The guest notice is the one most estates forget.

When a resident types in a guest's name and vehicle, the estate collects the guest's personal information from someone else. Section 12(1) of POPIA says personal information must be collected directly from the person, and section 12(2) lists the exceptions. One example is where collecting it from another source would not prejudice the person's legitimate interest. Take advice on which exception you rely on.

Section 18(1) then requires reasonably practicable steps to make the guest aware of what is collected, the source, who is collecting it, why, and their right to complain to the Information Regulator. Because the details come from the resident, section 18(2)(b) allows this before collection or as soon as reasonably practicable afterwards.

In practice, a short notice at the gate and a line in the invite cover most visits. For example:

[Estate name] records visitors' names, vehicle details and entry times, supplied by the resident who invited you or captured at this gate, to control access and keep residents safe. Records are kept for [period] and then deleted. Ask the estate office for our privacy notice. You may complain to the Information Regulator.

Section 13 (a specific purpose), section 14 (no longer retention than needed) and section 19 (security safeguards) apply too. Our Durban visitor management guide sets out the full POPIA table for gates. This is a summary, not legal advice.

What happens when a visitor arrives without a code?

The guard falls back to the manual process the house rules set. Pre-registration speeds up most entries, but it never removes the need for a fallback.

• Contact the resident through the estate's agreed channel, and record who confirmed the visit.
• Capture the visitor's details as for any walk-in, for example by scanning a licence or ID.
• If the resident cannot be reached, follow the rule. Do not let the guard make it up.
• Let emergency services through, and record the entry afterwards.

What are the risks of access codes, and how do you reduce them?

An access code proves that a resident expected someone, not who arrived. Most weaknesses come from that gap, and most fixes are simple habits.

• Codes passed on. A guest forwards a code to someone the resident does not know. Reduce it by recording the vehicle as well as the code, and by scanning a licence or ID for contractors.
• Old recurring invites. A gardener who stopped working for a household still has a valid invite. Ask residents to review recurring invites at a set interval.
• Residents who have moved out. A former tenant can still invite guests. Close accounts when the managing agent or the estate office records a move.
• Guards who stop checking. When most visitors have codes, a busy guard may wave cars through. Spot-check the entry log against the gate camera or the patrol record.
• No record of refusals. If a guard turns someone away, log it. Refusals often matter most after an incident.

None of these needs new hardware. They need clear rules, a named person who reviews accounts, and a manager who reads the gate log every week.

How Worxit handles visitor pre-registration

Zamatrack's Worxit Visitor Management module puts a client app for residents and a guard app for the gate in one system.

• Residents create invites with secure access codes, including future-dated invites.
• Recurring visits can be set up for regular contractors and service providers.
• At the gate, the guard app validates the code and logs the entry. Residents get arrival notifications.
• Managers send global notices, see who is on site and keep a central visitor history and audit trail.
• The same apps include facilities bookings and an emergency button for residents.
• For licence, ID and disc scanning at the boom, the Visitor Access Control module adds a 2D scanner workflow, a vehicle photo, the number plate and notes.

The Visitor Management System (VMS) licence is R1,300 per month. Each phone, tablet or radio running the Worxit app needs a mobile device licence at R350 per month. All prices exclude VAT. Gate devices and set-up depend on the site.

Frequently asked questions

Sources

• Protection of Personal Information Act 4 of 2013. gov.za. Sections 12, 13, 14, 18 and 19.
• Sectional Titles Schemes Management Act 8 of 2011. gov.za. Section 10: management and conduct rules, how they are changed and filed with the chief ombud.
• Information Regulator. The independent body that monitors and enforces compliance with POPIA, and receives complaints.