What was Tenancy Tribunal case 4717754 about?

The tribunal order states: The tenants names and identifying details must not be published.

How much money was awarded in case 4717754?

Property Damage: $450.00 awarded to landlord

What type of tenancy dispute was case 4717754?

The primary dispute was Property damage.

Where can I read the official tribunal order for case 4717754?

The official Ministry of Justice published order is available at https://forms.justice.govt.nz/search/Documents/TTV2/PDF/10215477-Tribunal_Order_Redacted.pdf.

What was Tenancy Tribunal case 4717754 about?

The tribunal order states: The tenants names and identifying details must not be published.

How much money was awarded in case 4717754?

Property Damage: $450.00 awarded to landlord

What type of tenancy dispute was case 4717754?

The primary dispute was Property damage.

Where can I read the official tribunal order for case 4717754?

The official Ministry of Justice published order is available at https://forms.justice.govt.nz/search/Documents/TTV2/PDF/10215477-Tribunal_Order_Redacted.pdf.

Unit/Flat 2, 24 Inverness Road, Browns Bay, Auckland 0630 Tenancy Tribunal Case 4717754 — Property damage

Order

Claims and awards in Tenancy Tribunal application 4717754 — net $450.00 NZD. Amounts reconciled from the published order (claims sum and net total). Verify on MoJ.
Claim	Landlord	Reason
Repairs to kitchen floor	$450.00	Repairs to kitchen floor
Net award	$450.00
Bond	$2,400.00
Total payable by Tenant to Landlord	$450.00

The tenants names and identifying details must not be published.

[The tenant/s] must pay Udy Realty Limited as agent for Ming Xiu Zhang $450.00 from the bond, calculated as shown in table below.

The Bond Centre is to pay the bond of $2,400.00 ([Bond number suppressed]) immediately apportioned as follows: Udy Realty Limited As Agent For Ming Xiu Zhang: $450.00 [The tenants]: $1,950.00

Reasons

Lily Jiao the property manager attended the hearing for the landlord.

The tenants attended for themselves

The landlord has applied for compensation for repairing the kitchen flooring.

The tenants damaged the kitchen’s vinyl floor by placing a hot pot on it.

The tenants took full responsibility and agreed with the landlord to get a contractor to repair the floor. The repair was substandard, so the tenants got another contractor at short notice to redo the job. Unfortunately, the new contractor also did a poor job and it emerged that the contractors had not only failed to repair the vinyl adequately but had also damaged the floors underneath the vinyl.

Are the tenants liable for the damage to the floors?

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.

The original vinyl flooring itself had little value because it was probably more than 10 years old. It is unfortunate the tenants’ contractors’ work was substandard and led to further damage. The damage was due to the contractors exercising less than reasonable prudence. If follows, the damage was due to carelessness.

The landlord provided two estimates for full repair and replacement of the kitchen flooring, the lesser being for $1,200.00, the greater over $2,800.00.

In the circumstances, I have determined that it is appropriate to order the tenants to reimburse the landlords $450.00 which is 50 per cent of the remaining bond. Non-publication

The Tribunal may, on the application of any party to proceedings or on its own initiative, having regard to the interests of the parties and to the public interest, order that the name or any identifying particulars of any party not be published.

Tenants have accepted responsibility for their actions but were let down by their contractors. They have already paid about $1,000.00 for the damage that, as discussed, regrettably made matters worse rather than better.

Publication would make it more difficult for the tenants to find new rental accommodation because landlords vet tenants by searching reported Tenancy Tribunal decisions. That would be unfair because the tenants have approached the issue responsibly. The public interest would not be served by publication. It is in the tenants’ interests and not averse to the landlord’s interests.

Therefore, the Tribunal orders non-publication of the tenants’ names and identifying details.

Claims and awards in Tenancy Tribunal application 4717754 — net $450.00 NZD. Amounts reconciled from the published order (claims sum and net total). Verify on MoJ.
Claim	Landlord	Reason
Repairs to kitchen floor	$450.00	Repairs to kitchen floor
Net award	$450.00
Bond	$2,400.00
Total payable by Tenant to Landlord	$450.00

Order

The tenants names and identifying details must not be published.
[The tenant/s] must pay Udy Realty Limited as agent for Ming Xiu Zhang $450.00 from the bond, calculated as shown in table below.
The Bond Centre is to pay the bond of $2,400.00 ([Bond number suppressed]) immediately apportioned as follows: Udy Realty Limited As Agent For Ming Xiu Zhang: $450.00 [The tenants]: $1,950.00

Reasons

Lily Jiao the property manager attended the hearing for the landlord.
The tenants attended for themselves
The landlord has applied for compensation for repairing the kitchen flooring.
The tenants damaged the kitchen’s vinyl floor by placing a hot pot on it.
The tenants took full responsibility and agreed with the landlord to get a contractor to repair the floor. The repair was substandard, so the tenants got another contractor at short notice to redo the job. Unfortunately, the new contractor also did a poor job and it emerged that the contractors had not only failed to repair the vinyl adequately but had also damaged the floors underneath the vinyl.

Are the tenants liable for the damage to the floors?

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.
The original vinyl flooring itself had little value because it was probably more than 10 years old. It is unfortunate the tenants’ contractors’ work was substandard and led to further damage. The damage was due to the contractors exercising less than reasonable prudence. If follows, the damage was due to carelessness.
The landlord provided two estimates for full repair and replacement of the kitchen flooring, the lesser being for $1,200.00, the greater over $2,800.00.
In the circumstances, I have determined that it is appropriate to order the tenants to reimburse the landlords $450.00 which is 50 per cent of the remaining bond. Non-publication
The Tribunal may, on the application of any party to proceedings or on its own initiative, having regard to the interests of the parties and to the public interest, order that the name or any identifying particulars of any party not be published.
Tenants have accepted responsibility for their actions but were let down by their contractors. They have already paid about $1,000.00 for the damage that, as discussed, regrettably made matters worse rather than better.
Publication would make it more difficult for the tenants to find new rental accommodation because landlords vet tenants by searching reported Tenancy Tribunal decisions. That would be unfair because the tenants have approached the issue responsibly. The public interest would not be served by publication. It is in the tenants’ interests and not averse to the landlord’s interests.
Therefore, the Tribunal orders non-publication of the tenants’ names and identifying details.

Tenancy Tribunal case 4717754 — Property damage at Unit/Flat 2, 24 Inverness Road, Browns Bay, Auckland 0630

At a glance

Tenancy Tribunal case 4717754 — Property damage at Unit/Flat 2, 24 Inverness Road, Browns Bay, Auckland 0630

At a glance

Award balance

Claims & awards

Order

Reasons

Are the tenants liable for the damage to the floors?

Topics & place

Residential Tenancies Act sections

Key findings

Frequently asked questions

Award balance

Claims & awards

Order

Reasons

Are the tenants liable for the damage to the floors?

Topics & place

Residential Tenancies Act sections

Key findings

Frequently asked questions