What was Tenancy Tribunal case 4885642 about?

The tribunal order states: An application for suppression has been made in this case, and the Tribunal

How much money was awarded in case 4885642?

Cleaning: $220.00 awarded to landlord; Property Damage: $399.00 awarded to tenant; Compensation: Loss Of Use Of Storage: $300.00 awarded to tenant; Compensation: maintenance - ceiling…: $250.00 awarded to tenant; Compensation: maintenance - pool bug…: $800.00 awarded to tenant; Filing Fee: $20.44 awarded to tenant; Rent In Lieu Of Notice To 24/05/2024: $1,412.15 awarded to landlord

Where can I read the official tribunal order for case 4885642?

The official Ministry of Justice published order is available at https://forms.justice.govt.nz/search/Documents/TTV2/PDF/11024149-Tribunal_Order_Redacted.pdf.

What was Tenancy Tribunal case 4885642 about?

The tribunal order states: An application for suppression has been made in this case, and the Tribunal

How much money was awarded in case 4885642?

Cleaning: $220.00 awarded to landlord; Property Damage: $399.00 awarded to tenant; Compensation: Loss Of Use Of Storage: $300.00 awarded to tenant; Compensation: maintenance - ceiling…: $250.00 awarded to tenant; Compensation: maintenance - pool bug…: $800.00 awarded to tenant; Filing Fee: $20.44 awarded to tenant; Rent In Lieu Of Notice To 24/05/2024: $1,412.15 awarded to landlord

Where can I read the official tribunal order for case 4885642?

The official Ministry of Justice published order is available at https://forms.justice.govt.nz/search/Documents/TTV2/PDF/11024149-Tribunal_Order_Redacted.pdf.

93A Naylor Street, Hamilton East, Hamilton 3216 Tenancy Tribunal Case 4885642 — Leaks

Claims and awards in Tenancy Tribunal application 4885642 — net $137.29 NZD. Amounts reconciled from the published order (claims sum and net total). Verify on MoJ.
Claim	Landlord	Tenant	Reason
Rent in lieu of notice to 24/05/2024	$1,412.15		Rent in lieu of notice to 24/05/2024
Carpet Cleaning: carpet stain treatment	$220.00		Carpet Cleaning: carpet stain treatment
Compensation: loss of use of storage		$300.00	loss of use of storage
Compensation: maintenance - pool bugs/smell		$800.00	maintenance - pool bugs/smell
Compensation: maintenance - ceiling leak		$250.00	maintenance - ceiling leak
Compensation: laptop damaged by leak		$399.00	laptop damaged by leak
Filing fee reimbursement		$20.44	Filing fee reimbursement
Total award	$1,632.15	$1,769.44
Net award		$137.29
Bond		$1,840.00
Total payable by Landlord to Tenant		$137.29

Order

An application for suppression has been made in this case, and the Tribunal orders suppression of the Tenant name and identifying details. 2.
The Bond Centre is to pay the bond of $1,840.00 ([Bond number suppressed]) to [The tenant/s] immediately.

Reasons

The landlords’ representatives and the tenant attended the hearing.
The owners have been separately served but chose not to attend. These proceedings name the landlord owners and agents because the owners live overseas. An agent appointed when a landlord is out of New Zealand for longer than 21 consecutive days has all the rights and obligations of a landlord; section 16A(5) Residential Tenancies Act 1986 (RTA).
The tenant wants to emphasise that she has no complaint with the landlords’ agent. She said that the owner (William Mok) was very aware of the issues raised in this application as he was staying at the tenancy address for some of the time during her tenancy and she discussed the problems with him several times.
Both parties have made applications. The landlord withdrew its claims for exemplary damages.
The tenant agrees to pay the cost of carpet cleaning (she accidentally dropped a cup of coffee on the moving out day). Ending of the tenancy – claim for rent
This tenancy started on 3 February 2023 and was for a fixed term of one year.
The landlord wrote to the tenant offering the tenant another one-year fixed term and she accepted this. The second fixed term was due to end on 2 February 2025.
The landlord claims rent payable up to 29 May 2024 on the basis that it secured new tenants from 30 May 2024, and the tenant is liable to pay rent up until this date because she ended the fixed term early.
The tenant does not consider she should be liable for this amount because she says the problems with the neighbour and the house are why she decided she had to move out.
A tenancy agreement is a legal contract. Section 37 of the Contract and Commercial Law Act 2017 (CCCL) allows for a right to cancel a contract if an essential part of that contract is breached.
After considering the tenant’s claims, I agree that she had a right to cancel the tenancy agreement with the landlord. She found out she was paying for the electricity usage of a neighbouring tenant, she could not use her storage area, she could not open her windows or use her outside deck over the summer months in 2024 because of smells and bugs, and then her bedroom ceiling leaked. It all became too much.
I discuss the tenant’s claims in full in the rest of this decision but for the purposes of the landlord’s claims, I accept that [The tenant/s] had the right to cancel the fixed term contract because of the breaches by the landlord.
After hearing the evidence, my decision is that the tenant is liable to pay rent until 24 May 2024 which is $1,412.15. My reasons are:- a. The tenant was entitled to terminate the fixed term tenancy early because of the breaches to her rights. She confirmed to the landlord in a text on 21 March 2024 that she wished to end the tenancy. b. However, the tenant was still required to notify the landlord of her preferred end date and there is no evidence that she did this. 1 [The tenant/s] accepted in the hearing that it is quite possible that she forgot to communicate this because of all the end of tenancy issues that she was dealing with. c. The landlord did not have a final date so it could not advertise the premises or start viewings. As soon as the landlord knew the tenant had moved out, it started this process. d. The landlord did not discover that the tenant had moved out until 4 May 2024. It managed to find a new tenant to start 25 days later. It is usual for a landlord to have a week or two between tenancies. I consider it is fair to award rent to 24 May 2024 which allows for 5 days vacancy between tenancies. Fixed term break costs
A landlord who consents to an early termination of a fixed term tenancy is entitled to recover from the outgoing tenant any expenses reasonably incurred by the landlord in respect of that; section 44A Residential Tenancies Act 1986 (RTA).
The landlord claims $595.47 for advertising, credit checks and agent time to sign up the next tenants.
I dismiss this claim. As I said above, my decision is that the tenant was entitled to cancel the contract because of the breaches by the landlord. This means she is not liable for the costs claimed. A landlord’s legal obligations
A landlord has legal obligations including to:- a. Provide the tenant with access to the premises and facilities promised under the tenancy agreement; 1 The landlord texted the tenant on 27 March 2024 and asked her to email the property manager “notice with your official last day ... when you know what day your last day will be”. b. provide and maintain tenancy premises in a reasonable state of repair having regard to its age and character; s45(1)(b) RTA, and c. take all reasonable steps to ensure that none of the landlord’s other tenants causes or permits any interference with the reasonable peace, comfort, or privacy of the tenant in the use of the premises; s45(1)(e) RTA. Use of storage – garage and under the house
The tenant says she did not have access to everything promised to her under the tenancy agreement.
The landlord agrees that the premises rented by [The tenant/s] included a garage storage space and an open area under her part of the house.
The landlord also accepts that these areas were used by a neighbour (“A”) who lived in a unit adjacent to [The tenant/s]. A used the areas to store boxes, plants, and various other items.
The evidence satisfies me that [The tenant/s] did ask the landlord to have the areas cleared so she could use them. The landlord did ask A to do so, and A would remove her items for a short time but soon put them back.
The landlord had an obligation to provide the tenant with the areas that she had rented. She did not receive these so has not received full value for the rent she paid. The tenant said she would have used these spaces to sit outside in summer. These are not living areas, so I award modest compensation of $300.00. Bugs, smells from disused swimming pool and neighbour’s items
[The tenant/s] says she was affected by unpleasant smells and large numbers of bugs and mosquitoes from a disused swimming pool at the back of the property. Rainwater collected in the pool and stagnated. She described a particularly strong smell at times from dead hedgehogs (that had fallen into the pool and drowned). She also thinks some of the smell and bugs may have been caused by A’s numerous plants and pots.
[The tenant/s] said she could not have her windows or sliding door (on to the deck) open. The problem was during the summer months. She said this affected her grandson who lived with her as he suffered from asthma.
The tenant said that the owner, Mr Mok, was very aware of these issues as he was staying at the property for some of the time and she discussed them with him several times. She described an arrangement between Mr Mok, herself, and another of his tenants to manage some of the maintenance.
I am satisfied that there was a breach of [The tenant/s] ability to enjoy and use the property caused by the bugs and smell. I was provided with photographs of the disused pool and of the large numbers of plants and pots around all sides of the tenant’s part of the property.
I accept the tenant’s evidence that she raised her concerns with Mr Mok and that she was proactive and tried to remedy the problems herself (emptying the pool of rainwater, removing dead hedgehogs, emptying A’s drums of water).
The landlord needed to take more responsibility. It is unacceptable that the tenant could not use her deck or open her windows. I award compensation for lost amenity during the summer months. I do not have exact information so assess this at $800.00 which is calculated as $50.00 per week for 16 weeks. Bedroom ceiling leak
The tenant said she was affected by a ceiling leak into her bedroom and that a laptop was ruined from water damage.
A landlord should take reasonable steps to try to investigate and fix any maintenance issues brought to their attention.
My summary of the evidence is:- a. There was a leak in the ceiling discovered by the property manager just before the tenancy started (her socks got wet when she went into the room); b. A plumber sealed some nail holes on the roof at this time (February 2023); c. The tenant and property manager noticed that the ceiling paint was flaking during the tenancy but did not check if the roof had started leaking again and there was no indication it had; d. The tenant noticed drips come through the ceiling around the light fitting and notified the landlord on 29 January 2024; e. The landlord has a work order dated 5 February 2024 to plumbers and says they advised they checked the roof and said it was fine; f. There was then a larger leak on 4 March 2024. The tenant sent a video of water dripping into a bowl and texts to both the property manager and the owner; g. The plumbers returned. Their invoice of 5 March 2024 says they sealed up 25 screws in the leaking area and left the roof in “good order”. The invoice also says the roof “is in need of a minimum of a rescrew and paint but full replacement of roof is needed in the near future for the best long term result”. h. The tenant says she was concerned about the ceiling looking like it would cave in, so she slept on the couch in the lounge for about two months.
Overall, I am satisfied that there was a leak that affected the tenant for about 5 weeks from 29 January until 5 March 2024 and damaged a laptop. I award $399.00 for the laptop and $250.00 for inconvenience and a loss of amenity. Electricity
The tenant claims compensation for electricity. A tenant is only liable to pay for electricity that they use; s39 RTA.
The landlord accepts that [the tenant/s] paid for electricity used by A up until 24th of October 2023 which is when separate meters were installed.
Prior to this date, A’s unit did not have a separate meter.
The landlord’s agent did the right thing and agreed with the tenant on an amount to compensate her for power usage by neighbour A. The tenant agrees that she has received $740.00 in compensation.
The tenant supplied most of her power bills. My assessment from these is that she has been compensated fairly for the electricity used by her neighbour (A).
I agree with her that the landlord should not have let this happen. It is an intentional breach of the RTA. Conclusion
This is a case where an overseas owner appointed an agent to act on their behalf but was themselves back in the country and even living at the property for part of this tenancy. Also, the tenant was engaged by the owner at times to do work for him. This complicated matters and may have blurred the landlord-tenant relationship.
What it comes down to is that the tenant paid rent to live in premises and should have received full use of those. She did not.
I award the filing fee to the tenant and suppress her name. I do not suppress the landlords’ names as they have breached their obligations.
The bond is refunded to the tenant in full and the landlord must pay the tenant the balance owing.

Claims and awards in Tenancy Tribunal application 4885642 — net $137.29 NZD. Amounts reconciled from the published order (claims sum and net total). Verify on MoJ.
Claim	Landlord	Tenant	Reason
Rent in lieu of notice to 24/05/2024	$1,412.15		Rent in lieu of notice to 24/05/2024
Carpet Cleaning: carpet stain treatment	$220.00		Carpet Cleaning: carpet stain treatment
Compensation: loss of use of storage		$300.00	loss of use of storage
Compensation: maintenance - pool bugs/smell		$800.00	maintenance - pool bugs/smell
Compensation: maintenance - ceiling leak		$250.00	maintenance - ceiling leak
Compensation: laptop damaged by leak		$399.00	laptop damaged by leak
Filing fee reimbursement		$20.44	Filing fee reimbursement
Total award	$1,632.15	$1,769.44
Net award		$137.29
Bond		$1,840.00
Total payable by Landlord to Tenant		$137.29

Order

An application for suppression has been made in this case, and the Tribunal orders suppression of the Tenant name and identifying details. 2.
The Bond Centre is to pay the bond of $1,840.00 ([Bond number suppressed]) to [The tenant/s] immediately.

Reasons

The landlords’ representatives and the tenant attended the hearing.
The owners have been separately served but chose not to attend. These proceedings name the landlord owners and agents because the owners live overseas. An agent appointed when a landlord is out of New Zealand for longer than 21 consecutive days has all the rights and obligations of a landlord; section 16A(5) Residential Tenancies Act 1986 (RTA).
The tenant wants to emphasise that she has no complaint with the landlords’ agent. She said that the owner (William Mok) was very aware of the issues raised in this application as he was staying at the tenancy address for some of the time during her tenancy and she discussed the problems with him several times.
Both parties have made applications. The landlord withdrew its claims for exemplary damages.
The tenant agrees to pay the cost of carpet cleaning (she accidentally dropped a cup of coffee on the moving out day). Ending of the tenancy – claim for rent
This tenancy started on 3 February 2023 and was for a fixed term of one year.
The landlord wrote to the tenant offering the tenant another one-year fixed term and she accepted this. The second fixed term was due to end on 2 February 2025.
The landlord claims rent payable up to 29 May 2024 on the basis that it secured new tenants from 30 May 2024, and the tenant is liable to pay rent up until this date because she ended the fixed term early.
The tenant does not consider she should be liable for this amount because she says the problems with the neighbour and the house are why she decided she had to move out.
A tenancy agreement is a legal contract. Section 37 of the Contract and Commercial Law Act 2017 (CCCL) allows for a right to cancel a contract if an essential part of that contract is breached.
After considering the tenant’s claims, I agree that she had a right to cancel the tenancy agreement with the landlord. She found out she was paying for the electricity usage of a neighbouring tenant, she could not use her storage area, she could not open her windows or use her outside deck over the summer months in 2024 because of smells and bugs, and then her bedroom ceiling leaked. It all became too much.
I discuss the tenant’s claims in full in the rest of this decision but for the purposes of the landlord’s claims, I accept that [The tenant/s] had the right to cancel the fixed term contract because of the breaches by the landlord.
After hearing the evidence, my decision is that the tenant is liable to pay rent until 24 May 2024 which is $1,412.15. My reasons are:- a. The tenant was entitled to terminate the fixed term tenancy early because of the breaches to her rights. She confirmed to the landlord in a text on 21 March 2024 that she wished to end the tenancy. b. However, the tenant was still required to notify the landlord of her preferred end date and there is no evidence that she did this. 1 [The tenant/s] accepted in the hearing that it is quite possible that she forgot to communicate this because of all the end of tenancy issues that she was dealing with. c. The landlord did not have a final date so it could not advertise the premises or start viewings. As soon as the landlord knew the tenant had moved out, it started this process. d. The landlord did not discover that the tenant had moved out until 4 May 2024. It managed to find a new tenant to start 25 days later. It is usual for a landlord to have a week or two between tenancies. I consider it is fair to award rent to 24 May 2024 which allows for 5 days vacancy between tenancies. Fixed term break costs
A landlord who consents to an early termination of a fixed term tenancy is entitled to recover from the outgoing tenant any expenses reasonably incurred by the landlord in respect of that; section 44A Residential Tenancies Act 1986 (RTA).
The landlord claims $595.47 for advertising, credit checks and agent time to sign up the next tenants.
I dismiss this claim. As I said above, my decision is that the tenant was entitled to cancel the contract because of the breaches by the landlord. This means she is not liable for the costs claimed. A landlord’s legal obligations
A landlord has legal obligations including to:- a. Provide the tenant with access to the premises and facilities promised under the tenancy agreement; 1 The landlord texted the tenant on 27 March 2024 and asked her to email the property manager “notice with your official last day ... when you know what day your last day will be”. b. provide and maintain tenancy premises in a reasonable state of repair having regard to its age and character; s45(1)(b) RTA, and c. take all reasonable steps to ensure that none of the landlord’s other tenants causes or permits any interference with the reasonable peace, comfort, or privacy of the tenant in the use of the premises; s45(1)(e) RTA. Use of storage – garage and under the house
The tenant says she did not have access to everything promised to her under the tenancy agreement.
The landlord agrees that the premises rented by [The tenant/s] included a garage storage space and an open area under her part of the house.
The landlord also accepts that these areas were used by a neighbour (“A”) who lived in a unit adjacent to [The tenant/s]. A used the areas to store boxes, plants, and various other items.
The evidence satisfies me that [The tenant/s] did ask the landlord to have the areas cleared so she could use them. The landlord did ask A to do so, and A would remove her items for a short time but soon put them back.
The landlord had an obligation to provide the tenant with the areas that she had rented. She did not receive these so has not received full value for the rent she paid. The tenant said she would have used these spaces to sit outside in summer. These are not living areas, so I award modest compensation of $300.00. Bugs, smells from disused swimming pool and neighbour’s items
[The tenant/s] says she was affected by unpleasant smells and large numbers of bugs and mosquitoes from a disused swimming pool at the back of the property. Rainwater collected in the pool and stagnated. She described a particularly strong smell at times from dead hedgehogs (that had fallen into the pool and drowned). She also thinks some of the smell and bugs may have been caused by A’s numerous plants and pots.
[The tenant/s] said she could not have her windows or sliding door (on to the deck) open. The problem was during the summer months. She said this affected her grandson who lived with her as he suffered from asthma.
The tenant said that the owner, Mr Mok, was very aware of these issues as he was staying at the property for some of the time and she discussed them with him several times. She described an arrangement between Mr Mok, herself, and another of his tenants to manage some of the maintenance.
I am satisfied that there was a breach of [The tenant/s] ability to enjoy and use the property caused by the bugs and smell. I was provided with photographs of the disused pool and of the large numbers of plants and pots around all sides of the tenant’s part of the property.
I accept the tenant’s evidence that she raised her concerns with Mr Mok and that she was proactive and tried to remedy the problems herself (emptying the pool of rainwater, removing dead hedgehogs, emptying A’s drums of water).
The landlord needed to take more responsibility. It is unacceptable that the tenant could not use her deck or open her windows. I award compensation for lost amenity during the summer months. I do not have exact information so assess this at $800.00 which is calculated as $50.00 per week for 16 weeks. Bedroom ceiling leak
The tenant said she was affected by a ceiling leak into her bedroom and that a laptop was ruined from water damage.
A landlord should take reasonable steps to try to investigate and fix any maintenance issues brought to their attention.
My summary of the evidence is:- a. There was a leak in the ceiling discovered by the property manager just before the tenancy started (her socks got wet when she went into the room); b. A plumber sealed some nail holes on the roof at this time (February 2023); c. The tenant and property manager noticed that the ceiling paint was flaking during the tenancy but did not check if the roof had started leaking again and there was no indication it had; d. The tenant noticed drips come through the ceiling around the light fitting and notified the landlord on 29 January 2024; e. The landlord has a work order dated 5 February 2024 to plumbers and says they advised they checked the roof and said it was fine; f. There was then a larger leak on 4 March 2024. The tenant sent a video of water dripping into a bowl and texts to both the property manager and the owner; g. The plumbers returned. Their invoice of 5 March 2024 says they sealed up 25 screws in the leaking area and left the roof in “good order”. The invoice also says the roof “is in need of a minimum of a rescrew and paint but full replacement of roof is needed in the near future for the best long term result”. h. The tenant says she was concerned about the ceiling looking like it would cave in, so she slept on the couch in the lounge for about two months.
Overall, I am satisfied that there was a leak that affected the tenant for about 5 weeks from 29 January until 5 March 2024 and damaged a laptop. I award $399.00 for the laptop and $250.00 for inconvenience and a loss of amenity. Electricity
The tenant claims compensation for electricity. A tenant is only liable to pay for electricity that they use; s39 RTA.
The landlord accepts that [the tenant/s] paid for electricity used by A up until 24th of October 2023 which is when separate meters were installed.
Prior to this date, A’s unit did not have a separate meter.
The landlord’s agent did the right thing and agreed with the tenant on an amount to compensate her for power usage by neighbour A. The tenant agrees that she has received $740.00 in compensation.
The tenant supplied most of her power bills. My assessment from these is that she has been compensated fairly for the electricity used by her neighbour (A).
I agree with her that the landlord should not have let this happen. It is an intentional breach of the RTA. Conclusion
This is a case where an overseas owner appointed an agent to act on their behalf but was themselves back in the country and even living at the property for part of this tenancy. Also, the tenant was engaged by the owner at times to do work for him. This complicated matters and may have blurred the landlord-tenant relationship.
What it comes down to is that the tenant paid rent to live in premises and should have received full use of those. She did not.
I award the filing fee to the tenant and suppress her name. I do not suppress the landlords’ names as they have breached their obligations.
The bond is refunded to the tenant in full and the landlord must pay the tenant the balance owing.

Tenancy Tribunal case 4885642 — Leaks at 93A Naylor Street, Hamilton East, Hamilton 3216

At a glance

Tenancy Tribunal case 4885642 — Leaks at 93A Naylor Street, Hamilton East, Hamilton 3216

At a glance

Award balance

Claims & awards

Order

Reasons

Topics & place

Residential Tenancies Act sections

Key findings

Frequently asked questions

Award balance

Claims & awards

Order

Reasons

Topics & place

Residential Tenancies Act sections

Key findings

Frequently asked questions