What was Tenancy Tribunal case 4671489 about?

The tribunal order states: By consent the term of the fixed-term of the tenancy of [The tenant/s] at

How much money was awarded in case 4671489?

Compensation: $1,374.69 awarded to tenant; Property Damage: $1,000.00 awarded to tenant; Filing Fee: $20.44 awarded to tenant

What type of tenancy dispute was case 4671489?

The primary dispute was Exemplary damages.

Where can I read the official tribunal order for case 4671489?

The official Ministry of Justice published order is available at https://forms.justice.govt.nz/search/Documents/TTV2/PDF/9579386-Tribunal_Order_Redacted.pdf.

What was Tenancy Tribunal case 4671489 about?

The tribunal order states: By consent the term of the fixed-term of the tenancy of [The tenant/s] at

How much money was awarded in case 4671489?

Compensation: $1,374.69 awarded to tenant; Property Damage: $1,000.00 awarded to tenant; Filing Fee: $20.44 awarded to tenant

What type of tenancy dispute was case 4671489?

The primary dispute was Exemplary damages.

Where can I read the official tribunal order for case 4671489?

The official Ministry of Justice published order is available at https://forms.justice.govt.nz/search/Documents/TTV2/PDF/9579386-Tribunal_Order_Redacted.pdf.

New Zealand Tenancy Tribunal Case 4671489 — Exemplary damages

Claims and awards in Tenancy Tribunal application 4671489 — net $2,395.13 NZD. Amounts reconciled from the published order (claims sum and net total). Verify on MoJ.
Claim	Tenant	Reason
Compensation	$1,374.69	Compensation
Exemplary damages	$1,000.00	Exemplary damages
Filing fee reimbursement	$20.44	Filing fee reimbursement
Net award	$2,395.13
Total payable by Landlord to Tenant	$2,395.13

Claims and awards in Tenancy Tribunal application 4671489 — net $2,395.13 NZD. Amounts reconciled from the published order (claims sum and net total). Verify on MoJ.
Claim	Tenant	Reason
Compensation	$1,374.69	Compensation
Exemplary damages	$1,000.00	Exemplary damages
Filing fee reimbursement	$20.44	Filing fee reimbursement
Net award	$2,395.13
Total payable by Landlord to Tenant	$2,395.13

Order

By consent the term of the fixed-term of the tenancy of [The tenant/s] at [Tenancy address suppressed] is ended and the tenancy continues as a periodic tenancy.
By consent the tenant may end the periodic tenancy upon giving 21 days’ notice to the landlord.
[The landlord/s] must pay [The tenant/s] $2,395.13 immediately, calculated as shown in the table below DescriptionTenant Compensation $1,374.69 Exemplary damages $1,000.00 Filing fee reimbursement $20.44 Total award $2,395.13 Total payable by Landlord to Tenant $2,395.13

Reasons

Both parties attended the hearing on 27 October 2023.
This tenancy commenced on 21 April 2023. The tenant rented an inner-city apartment and the parties entered in to a one year fixed term tenancy agreement.
The tenant is looking for alternative accommodation and seeks reduction of the fixed-term due to end on 19 April 2024 and that the tenancy continue as a periodic tenancy.
The landlord consented to the tenancy being converted to a periodic tenancy and advised that they also consent to the notice period for termination by the tenant being reduced to 21 days.
The tenant also seeks compensation and exemplary damages for breaches by the landlord.

Did the landlord breach their obligations under section 45 of the RTA?

[The tenant/s] claims that the landlord has breached their obligations under section 45 of the Residential Tenancies Act 1986.
Under section 45, a landlord must provide the premises in a reasonable state of cleanliness, provide and maintain the premises in a reasonable state of repair, comply with all requirements in respect of smoke alarms and insulation set out in the Residential Tenancies (Smoke Alarms and Insulation) Regulations 2016, and in relation to buildings, health and safety.
Breaching any of these obligations is an unlawful act for which exemplary damages may be awarded up to a maximum of $7,200.00. See section 45(1A) and Schedule 1A Residential Tenancies Act 1986.
The tenant stated that on 3 August 2023 she received a note under her apartment door from the building management advising that the air filters in the air conditioning had been changed. The tenant noticed the same day that there was no heating coming from the air conditioning unit. She went to reception at the apartment block to report that her heating was not working and was told that this should not have been caused by the air filter change.
On 4 August 2023 the tenant noticed a burning smell in her apartment and again reported this to reception. The building manager attended her apartment and advised her to contact the landlord.
On 12 August 2023 the tenant emailed the landlord to advise of the problem.
On 18 August 2023 the tenant again contacted the landlord who arranged for a contractor to attend the apartment.
A report from [the contractor] was provided which confirmed that a callout was attended on 18 August and it was found the unit wasn't moving any air, the fans were not running and the motor temperature was at 156°C. The contractor recorded that the air conditioning required a replacement fan motor and air diverter motor.
Repair work was done on 30 August 2023 and the contractor returned on 31 August 2023 as the tenant reported that the strong smell was continuing. The contractor cleaned the filter. The tenant produced a recording where the contractor is cleaning the filthy filter and states that this is not a recent build-up of dirt and the filters have not been cleaned for a long time.
The tenant stated that the smell has continued. She stated that she has had to purchase an air purifier which has improved the air but a recent reading only refers to the air quality as moderate.
The landlord produced a Healthy Homes Report dated 27 September 2023 which stated that the property was compliant in all respects except ventilation. The landlord stated this was updated remotely on 24 October 2023 and the premises were fully compliant.
The landlord had 120 days from the start of the tenancy to ensure a property is Healthy Homes compliant which for this tenancy was by 19 August 2023. This this timeframe was not met in respect of the ventilation as there were windows that did not open. Both parties advised that the windows that were not opening have now been repaired. The landlord provided an invoice dated 6 October 2023.
In respect of the heating claim, even if heating is provided, the landlord has a responsibility to maintain and repair the heating.
The tenant notified the landlord the air conditioning heating unit was not working on 12 August 2023. Repair work was not done until 30 August 2023 which did not remedy the problem. The tenant stated that upon being called back to the apartment the contractor switched off the air conditioning in the ceiling and there has been no heating in the apartment since that time. The tenant stated that she had to keep the windows open due to the smell and that with no heating this has resulted in the apartment being cold. She stated that she became unwell and had five days off work as a result. The tenant produced evidence of medical visits, blood tests and sick leave taken.
The tenant produced a Heating Report from Oncore dated 17 October 2023 which stated that the report writer turned the air conditioning back on and within minutes the air conditioning unit was very warm. The report writer stated that they turned the air conditioning off again. The report includes a photograph of the area in the ceiling around the unit and comments that “there was soot/carbon on the insulation around the unit”.
The tenant seeks compensation for costs associated with the health effects of the lack of heating and the purchase cost of an air purifier to address the smell as a result of the air conditioning motor overheating. She has provided invoices, payslips and a spreadsheet in support of the costs claimed.
Having considered the evidence the Tribunal finds that the landlord breached the requirements of section 45 and has committed an unlawful act.
The landlord agreed that there had been a failure to address the issues in a reasonable timeframe and did not dispute the claims for compensation and exemplary damages. The landlord did question whether all of the sick leave should be compensated as it could not be proved that the air conditioning failure was the sole cause of the tenant’s ill health.
There has been a recent change in property management and the new property managers apologised for the delays and agreed to arrange a contractor to address and remedy the issues promptly following this hearing.
The Tribunal orders reimbursement of the costs claimed with the exception of two days sick leave. The total compensation ordered is $1374.69.
The tenant also seeks exemplary damages. The Tribunal finds that the unreasonable delays in remedying the healthy homes and maintenance issues amount to intentional breaches of section 45.
Where a party has committed an unlawful act intentionally, the Tribunal may award exemplary damages where it is satisfied it would be just to do so, having regard to the party’s intent, the effect of the unlawful act, the interests of the other party, and the public interest. See section 109(3) Residential Tenancies Act 1986.
The stress on the tenant of the breaches was evident at the hearing. The tenant advised that the need to be in ongoing communication with the landlord to have issues addressed, the cold premises and the smell has affected her enjoyment of the premises. It is in the public interest that landlords take seriously their responsibility to ensure that they honour their obligations under section 45 for the health and safety of tenants. The Tribunal has considered the factors in this case including the short length of this tenancy and no evidence of prior breaches and orders exemplary damages at the low end of the scale in the sum of $1000.00. Filing fee/Suppression
Because [The tenant/s] has wholly succeeded with the claim I must reimburse the filing fee.
The Tribunal may on the application of any party or on its own initiative make a suppression order, having regard to the interests of the parties and to the public interest. Section 95A (4) Residential Tenancies Act 1986. Both parties have applied for a suppression order. Having considered the factors in this case including the goodwill between the parties and the agreement reached regarding some issues the Tribunal grants suppression as sought.

Tenancy Tribunal case 4671489 — Exemplary damages

At a glance

Tenancy Tribunal case 4671489 — Exemplary damages

At a glance

Award balance

Claims & awards

Order

Reasons

Did the landlord breach their obligations under section 45 of the RTA?

Topics & place

Residential Tenancies Act sections

Key findings

Frequently asked questions

Award balance

Claims & awards

Order

Reasons

Did the landlord breach their obligations under section 45 of the RTA?

Topics & place

Residential Tenancies Act sections

Key findings

Frequently asked questions