Published tribunal order
Tenancy Tribunal case 4692030 — Rent arrears at 34 Bernard Street, Chedworth, Hamilton 3210
Decided 13 Dec 2023 · Published 13 Dec 2023 · Application 4692030
- Rent arrears
- Property damage
- Cleanliness
Party names are redacted in the official published order.
Order
- Vanita Rangi Kutia and Kael Kutia must pay [The landlord/s] $7,812.95, calculated as shown in the table below.
- The tenants must pay the debt in order 2 at the rate of $150.00 per fortnight.
- The first payment must be made on Thursday 14 December 2023 and payments must continue every second Thursday until the debt is paid in full.
- If the tenants fail to make any payment within 2 working days of the due date, the balance of the debt owing will be payable immediately and can be enforced through the District Court.
- This order incorporates the Tribunal order made on 3 July 2023 under application 4604755.
Reasons
- The landlord’s representatives and Kael Kutia attended the hearing on 5 December 2023. Vanita Kutia did not attend.
- Kael Kutia moved out of the premises in May 2023 but remains jointly liable under the tenancy agreement.
- The landlord has applied for payment of rent owing and for compensation for costs after the end of the tenancy.
- The tenancy ended on 7 August 2023. A previous order under application 4604755 awarded rent owing up to 3 July 2023 of $2,860.00 and the filing fee of $20.44. That order is incorporated into this order for enforcement purposes.
- The landlord has provided rent records which prove that additional rent owing to the end of the tenancy is $2,259.00.
- I also award the possession order enforcement fee of $200.00 (related to previous application 4604755) as the landlord did not claim this through the enforcement process. End of tenancy costs
- A tenant has a legal duty to leave premises reasonably clean and tidy, remove all rubbish, return all keys and security devices, and leave all chattels provided for their benefit. See section 40(1)(e)(ii)-(v) Residential Tenancies Act 1986 (RTA).
- The landlord provided extensive photographs and has proven that the premises were not left reasonably clean and tidy, and that belongings and rubbish were left behind.
- Vanita Kutia agreed in writing that the belongings were of no value and that she wished the landlord to arrange for removal and disposal of all items. This amounted to four skip bins at a cost of $1,480.00 and contractor labour of $667.00. The photographs substantiate the work done and I award the claim.
- Standard cleaning was needed after removal of all belongings. This cost is reasonable for a large house (4-bedroom, 2-bathroom) and it is awarded in full.
- The cost of carpet cleaning is awarded to remove marks (shown in photos).
- Three curtains needed dry-cleaning due to a pen marks.
- The keys and remotes were not returned. The cost to rekey and reprogram new remotes is awarded.
- The landlord had to replace 16 light bulbs. I award compensation based on the cost to replace standard light bulbs (assessed with the agent during the hearing) and one specialised bathroom bulb. The tenancy was just over 3 years in length, so it is reasonable for a tenant to pay for usage of standard lightbulbs over this time.
- All receipts were provided. Costs to repair damage
- The law in regard to damage to tenancy premises is:- a. A landlord must first prove that any damage to the premises occurred during the tenancy and is more than fair wear and tear. b. If this is proved, 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. c. 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. See section 49B(3)(a) RTA. d. 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. e. 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.
- I am satisfied that the following damage most probably occurred during the tenancy:- a. A small area of the deck was burnt (approximately 60cm long and 3 boards wide) possibly caused by use of a brazier, b. Three walls showed damage from removal of shelves, or other fixtures, c. That decals or wall ornaments on three interior walls were left behind and attached using adhesive or adhesive backing without the prior consent of the landlord. The removal of these by the landlord was reasonable and caused damage to the painted surface of the walls, d. That about 40 adhesive picture tapes (3M type) were left behind on several walls throughout the house. It was reasonable for the landlord to arrange to have these removed and to have the resulting minor damage to the painted surfaces repaired.
- I am satisfied that the damage is more than fair wear and tear and the tenants have not disproved liability for the damage.
- A receipt was provided for the cost to repair the deck, and this is awarded.
- I have relied on the landlord’s verbal evidence that the work to remove the adhesive and repaint the walls has been done only to a level to return the walls to the condition they would have been in had the damage not occurred. Where possible, the paintwork was patched rather than the whole wall repainted. The total cost is reasonable considering the number of walls affected. After discussion, the travel charge of $100.00 is not awarded as the contractor came from Auckland to do the work and was attending to other work (at the landlord’s cost) at the same time.
- The landlord has substantially succeeded with the claim, so I award the filing fee and suppress those names, as applied for.
- The bond has already been refunded to the landlord. The balance of the total owing is payable by the tenants.
- A repayment arrangement was agreed to during the hearing and is recorded in the order.