What was Tenancy Tribunal case 4656589 about?

The tribunal order states: Crystal Staranto-Pratt and Lemigaoitamalii Turangi Fai must pay [The

How much money was awarded in case 4656589?

Property Damage: $500.00 awarded to landlord; Rent Arrears: $4,199.15 awarded to landlord; Water Rates: $312.01 awarded to landlord

What type of tenancy dispute was case 4656589?

The primary dispute was Rent arrears. Related themes: Property damage.

Where can I read the official tribunal order for case 4656589?

The official Ministry of Justice published order is available at https://forms.justice.govt.nz/search/Documents/TTV2/PDF/9912342-Tribunal_Order_Redacted.pdf.

What was Tenancy Tribunal case 4656589 about?

The tribunal order states: Crystal Staranto-Pratt and Lemigaoitamalii Turangi Fai must pay [The

How much money was awarded in case 4656589?

Property Damage: $500.00 awarded to landlord; Rent Arrears: $4,199.15 awarded to landlord; Water Rates: $312.01 awarded to landlord

What type of tenancy dispute was case 4656589?

The primary dispute was Rent arrears. Related themes: Property damage.

Where can I read the official tribunal order for case 4656589?

The official Ministry of Justice published order is available at https://forms.justice.govt.nz/search/Documents/TTV2/PDF/9912342-Tribunal_Order_Redacted.pdf.

Unit/Flat 1, 207 Sunnynook Road, Wairau Valley, Auckland Tenancy Tribunal Case 4656589 — Rent arrears

Tenantcheck Insights

Reasons

Claims and awards in Tenancy Tribunal application 4656589 — net $3,961.16 NZD. Amounts reconciled from the published order (claims sum and net total). Verify on MoJ.
Claim	Landlord	Reason
Rent arrears	$4,199.15	Rent arrears
Water rates	$312.01	Water rates
Repairs	$500.00	Repairs
Net award	$3,961.16
Total payable by Tenant to Landlord	$3,961.16

The landlord and tenant Crystal Staranto-Pratt attended the hearing by teleconference. The other tenant Lemigaoitamalii Turangi Fai was unavailable. The hearing continued in his absence.

The landlord has applied for rent and water arrears, compensation and refund of the bond following the end of the tenancy.

How much is owed for rent and water rates?

The tenancy ended on or about 9 August 2023. The landlord provided rent records and a water rates invoice and schedule which prove the amount owing at the end of the tenancy. During the hearing the tenant also accepted full responsibility for these debts.

Is the tenant responsible for the damage to the premises?

A landlord must prove that damage to the premises occurred during the tenancy and is more than fair wear and tear. If this is established, to avoid liability, the tenant must prove they did not carelessly or intentionally cause or permit the damage. Tenants are liable for the actions of people at the premises with their permission. See sections 40(2)(a), 41 and 49B RTA.

Where the damage is careless, and occurs after 27 August 2019, section 49B RTA applies. If the landlord becomes aware of the damage after 27 August, the damage is presumed to have occurred after that date unless the tenant proves otherwise.

Where the damage is caused carelessly, and is covered by the landlord's insurance, the tenant's liability is limited to the lesser of the insurance excess or four weeks' rent (or four weeks' market rent in the case of a tenant paying income-related rent). See section 49B(3)(a) RTA.

Where the damage is careless and is not covered by the landlord's insurance, the tenant's liability is limited to four weeks' rent (or market rent). See section 49B(3)(b) RTA. Where insurance money is irrecoverable because of the tenant's conduct, the property is treated as if it is not insured against the damage. See section 49B(3A)(a) RTA.

Tenants are liable for the cost of repairing damage that is intentional or which results from any activity at the premises that is an imprisonable offence. This applies to anything the tenant does and anything done by a person they are responsible for. See section 49B(1) RTA.

Damage is intentional where a person intends to cause damage and takes the necessary steps to achieve that purpose. Damage is also intentional where a person does something, or allows a situation to continue, knowing that damage is a certainty. See Guo v Korck [2019] NZHC 1541.

The landlord makes a number of claims in respect of alleged damage caused by the tenants. The landlord provided a quote for $5950.00 plus GST from Nuglass Structure Limited dated 19 August 2023. Based on that quote the landlord claims the following a. Repairs to damaged walls and doors b. Painting c. Carpet repair d. Living area wallpaper repair e. Replace kitchen cabinet door and hinges and handles f. Replace hardware to kitchen sliding door g. Replace two wall lights and toilet ceiling lighting h. Replace bedroom door handles.

The tenant accepts that her daughter placed stickers on the master bedroom wall. She also accepts the damage to the carpet. The remaining damage claims are not accepted by the tenant.

The tenant says that one of the dents in the wall was there at the start of the tenancy. She further stated that the kitchen cabinet door and handles were already coming off early on during the tenancy. The tenant stated that there was nothing wrong with the kitchen sliding door. The tenant also advised the landlord during an inspection that some of the lights were not working. The tenant also stated that she had to remove one of the door handles as it kept sticking. She accepted that she was unable to find this door handle at the end of the tenancy. The landlord was unable to provide a receipt for the two new door handles.

The landlord has provided minimal evidence in support of his claim. I have sighted the small number of undated photographs provided in support of the damage claims. There were no entry photographs provided with the application which would have confirmed the condition of the property at the start of the tenancy. There were also no inspection reports provided in support.

I am satisfied on the balance of probabilities that the tenants are responsible for some of the damage, but not to the extent as claimed by the landlord. The full extent of the various claims for damage to the premises is not supported by the evidence filed with the application.

Accordingly, I find that a reduced level of compensation is appropriate which recognises the tenants’ culpability. The evidence filed by the landlord simply does not support the amount claimed for damage.

The landlord confirmed during the hearing that he is not seeking reimbursement of the filing fee.

The Tribunal must, on the application of a party that has wholly or substantially succeeded in proceedings, order that the party’s name or identifying particulars not be published, unless the Tribunal considers that publication is in the public interest or is justified because of the party’s conduct or any other circumstances of the case – section 95A Residential Tenancies Act.

The landlord applied for a name suppression order. The landlord has been substantially successful and therefore I will order suppression of name as requested.

Reasons

Claims and awards in Tenancy Tribunal application 4656589 — net $3,961.16 NZD. Amounts reconciled from the published order (claims sum and net total). Verify on MoJ.
Claim	Landlord	Reason
Rent arrears	$4,199.15	Rent arrears
Water rates	$312.01	Water rates
Repairs	$500.00	Repairs
Net award	$3,961.16
Total payable by Tenant to Landlord	$3,961.16

The landlord and tenant Crystal Staranto-Pratt attended the hearing by teleconference. The other tenant Lemigaoitamalii Turangi Fai was unavailable. The hearing continued in his absence.

The landlord has applied for rent and water arrears, compensation and refund of the bond following the end of the tenancy.

How much is owed for rent and water rates?

Is the tenant responsible for the damage to the premises?

The tenant accepts that her daughter placed stickers on the master bedroom wall. She also accepts the damage to the carpet. The remaining damage claims are not accepted by the tenant.

The landlord confirmed during the hearing that he is not seeking reimbursement of the filing fee.

The landlord applied for a name suppression order. The landlord has been substantially successful and therefore I will order suppression of name as requested.

Tenancy Tribunal case 4656589 — Rent arrears at Unit/Flat 1, 207 Sunnynook Road, Wairau Valley, Auckland

At a glance

Tenancy Tribunal case 4656589 — Rent arrears at Unit/Flat 1, 207 Sunnynook Road, Wairau Valley, Auckland

At a glance

Award balance

Claims & awards

Order

Reasons

How much is owed for rent and water rates?

Is the tenant responsible for the damage to the premises?

Topics & place

Residential Tenancies Act sections

Key findings

Frequently asked questions

Award balance

Claims & awards

Order

Reasons

How much is owed for rent and water rates?

Is the tenant responsible for the damage to the premises?

Topics & place

Residential Tenancies Act sections

Key findings

Frequently asked questions