What was Tenancy Tribunal case 4890621 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 4890621?

Property Damage: $5,000.00 awarded to landlord; Filing Fee: $20.44 awarded to landlord

What type of tenancy dispute was case 4890621?

The primary dispute was Exemplary damages.

Where can I read the official tribunal order for case 4890621?

The official Ministry of Justice published order is available at https://forms.justice.govt.nz/search/Documents/TTV2/PDF/11196709-Tribunal_Order_Redacted.pdf.

What was Tenancy Tribunal case 4890621 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 4890621?

Property Damage: $5,000.00 awarded to landlord; Filing Fee: $20.44 awarded to landlord

What type of tenancy dispute was case 4890621?

The primary dispute was Exemplary damages.

Where can I read the official tribunal order for case 4890621?

The official Ministry of Justice published order is available at https://forms.justice.govt.nz/search/Documents/TTV2/PDF/11196709-Tribunal_Order_Redacted.pdf.

New Zealand Tenancy Tribunal Case 4890621 — Exemplary damages

Claims and awards in Tenancy Tribunal application 4890621. Amounts reconciled from the published order (claims sum and net total). Verify on MoJ.
Claim	Landlord	Tenant	Reason
Exemplary damages	$5,000.00		the access problems and the other factors, I order that the landlord is to pay $5000 exemplary damages. I note that this figure does not fully capture the tena…
Filing fee reimbursement	$20.44		Filing fee reimbursement

Order

An application for suppression has been made in this case, and the Tribunal orders suppression of the Tenants’ and Landlord’s name and identifying details.

Reasons

Both parties attended the hearing.
[The tenant/s] claim that the landlord has breached their obligations to maintain under section 45 of the Residential Tenancies Act 1986, by failing to maintain the property. They also alleged that their quiet enjoyment has been breached. The tenancy is on a reasonably large backlot, and the house is accessed via a gravel driveway approximately 100m long. The driveway, trees, lawns and other maintenance issues
When the tenancy began in December 2021, the driveway was in reasonable condition, however the property is low lying, and the driveway sits below the level of the surrounding lawns and is affected by drainage. As I understand it the issue comes in part due to the condition of a soak-pit at the road-end of the driveway which has blocked with debris and vegetation and requires work.
Over the course of the tenancy, Mr[The tenant/s], who is a drainlayer and an experienced contractor, has supplied and applied metal to the driveway and graded it. However, despite this work, by mid-2022, the driveway was badly pot- holed. In August 2022, the bottled gas supplier refused to continue the supply of gas for health and safety reasons to do with the condition of the driveway. In May 2024, in response to a query about items stolen from the roadside, NZPost confirmed that it was not delivering to the house due to the driveway.
The driveway was an issue as early as 21 December 2021, when the tenants emailed the landlord advising that a truck had got stuck on the driveway. On 8 September 2022, the tenants emailed the landlord with a proposal to fix the driveway, advising of the gas issue and that couriers were not willing to risk the driveway. There were further communications following this. However, it was not until July 2024, following a 14-day notice served by the tenants on 2 May 2024, that the landlord took steps to repair the driveway. The driveway was re- gravelled in early September 2024, although I note that the contractor who did the work says the work is a temporary repair and that the driveway needs to be rebuilt to address the drainage issues.
During the period in which the driveway was affected Ms [The tenant/s] had surgery and later suffered an injury which affected her mobility. During her recoveries potholes in the driveway made accessing the house painful. The water heating and cooking are via gas and the house is not connected to mains gas supply/ The inability to have gas delivered meant that the tenants had to purchase gas in bbq bottles at considerable extra cost. The tenants also say that their vehicles have all sustained damage or have had maintenance issues related to the rough nature of the driveway.
The landlord alleges that the tenants’ use of the driveway to park work vehicles, including trucks, has contributed to the state of the driveway, citing a request to the tenant not to do so in April 2024. The tenants responded that only smaller vehicles were left on the driveway, the larger trucks were parked on the road, and that the worst areas were beyond where the trucks were parked.
The tenants also allege that the landlord has not maintained the lawns and trees. The tenancy agreement records that the rent was reduced to allow for the tenant mowing the lawns using a ride-on mower provided by the landlord. The mower broke down in April 2022, and following this it appears that there was a loose agreement that the tenant would mow the lawns in the immediate vicinity of the house and the “paddock” area further away from the house would be mowed by a contractor paid by the landlord. The tenant says that the lawns and gardens were in poor condition when they moved in, and supplied photos showing the lawns slightly overgrown. The landlords’ response was that the photos appear to show what would be expected growth in the timeframe between the photos taken in the pre-tenancy report and the tenants’ photos.
The property has a number of large trees, and the maintenance of these trees is beyond the tenants’ duty for the maintenance of gardens. Despite this the tenant has on occasion pruned and trimmed trees for safety reasons. The issue was highlighted when in October 2024, a cabbage tree was blown down and damaged the tenants’ caravan. Early in the tenancy an arborist was sent to the property by the owner, without the landlord’s knowledge, advising that he had been instructed to remove trees to allow for subdivision. However, as discussed below, this work did not proceed. While there were no emails about the trees the tenant referred to having discussed the issues with the previous property manager.
The tenants also cited issues with gutters being blocked, and the tenants paid for the house to be pressure washed and gutters cleaned.
Under section 45, a landlord must provide and maintain the premises in a reasonable state of repair. This includes the driveway which is the only access to the property and the maintenance of the trees.
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.
With regard to the lawns, the gutters and house, I acknowledge that there were issues with maintenance. However, the delays in lawns and berms being maintained appear to be a contractor who was not doing the work they were employed to do. The gutters and house did not cause any issues for the tenants apart from being unsightly, and these issues were not raised with the landlord prior to the work being done.
The landlord failed to address the driveway issue for over two years, and this had real consequences for the tenants. The visit from the arborist at the start of the tenancy shows the owner was aware of tree maintenance issues. The tenant mentioned both issues in the 14-day notice and while the landlord did eventually address the driveway, the trees were not maintained, and damage eventuated. I find the landlord has committed unlawful acts by the delay in fixing the driveway, and by failing to maintain trees on the property.
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.
Considering, the requirements of 109(3)(a) to (d): a. The intent of the landlord is by inference to avoid paying to maintain the driveway. There may have been a communication issue between the owner and landlord with regard to the trees, however, I am satisfied that the landlord should have been aware that the trees were an issue which needed to be remedied. b. The effect of the driveway issues included; increased cost of heating water and cooking, damage to vehicles, pain and suffering due to the access issues following the surgery and injury, loss of amenity, and the tenants costs of maintain the driveway themselves. The tree maintenance issue caused unquantified damage to the tenants’ caravan. c. The interests of the tenant affected were the right to ease of access of their home, and the uncertainty of access in wet or wintery conditions. The tenants had concerns about the safety of their children and neighbours due to the condition of the trees d. The public interest is served when landlords take steps to address issues brought to their attention by tenants. The landlord sat on their hands with regard to the driveway issues for an unreasonably long period of time.
Taking into account the damage to the tenants vehicles, the gas issue, the access problems and the other factors, I order that the landlord is to pay $5000 exemplary damages. I note that this figure does not fully capture the tenants alleged losses, which are only partially quantified, nor does it capture that the landlord has not previously been before the Tribunal for similar issues. However, exemplary damages are intended to address unlawful behaviour, rather to compensate. The main behaviour in this case was the 2 years during which the landlord took no steps to address the driveway issue. Quiet enjoyment
[The tenant/s] claim the landlord has harassed them.
A landlord must not interfere with the reasonable peace, comfort or privacy of the tenant in their use of the premises. See section 38(2) Residential Tenancies Act 1986.
Breaching this obligation in circumstances that amount to harassment is an unlawful act for which exemplary damages may be awarded up to a maximum of $3,000.00. See section 38(3) and Schedule 1A RTA.
Harassment means "to trouble, worry or distress" or "to wear out, tire, or exhaust" and "indicates a particular pattern of behaviour directed towards another person". MacDonald v Dodds, CIV-2009-019-001524, DC Hamilton, 26 February 2010.
The incidents cited are the un-notified visit of an arborist early in the tenancy when [The tenant/s] was at home with her children, and an inspection which, due to an error did not occur at the scheduled time. She found these visits unsettling for three reasons; she has a complex PTSD condition, the tenants’ dogs are protective, and could cause harm to unexpectedly visitors, and, in the case of the arborist, the visitor was rude and abusive.
I note that the landlord apologies about the second incident, and was not aware of the arborist visit, not having been made aware by the owner. While I acknowledge the unsettling effect of these incidents, they do not constitute harassment. This is because there is no pattern; the first incident was a contractor arranged by the owner, the second was a planned inspection which occurred on the wrong date.

Claims and awards in Tenancy Tribunal application 4890621. Amounts reconciled from the published order (claims sum and net total). Verify on MoJ.
Claim	Landlord	Tenant	Reason
Exemplary damages	$5,000.00		the access problems and the other factors, I order that the landlord is to pay $5000 exemplary damages. I note that this figure does not fully capture the tena…
Filing fee reimbursement	$20.44		Filing fee reimbursement

Order

An application for suppression has been made in this case, and the Tribunal orders suppression of the Tenants’ and Landlord’s name and identifying details.

Reasons

Both parties attended the hearing.
[The tenant/s] claim that the landlord has breached their obligations to maintain under section 45 of the Residential Tenancies Act 1986, by failing to maintain the property. They also alleged that their quiet enjoyment has been breached. The tenancy is on a reasonably large backlot, and the house is accessed via a gravel driveway approximately 100m long. The driveway, trees, lawns and other maintenance issues
When the tenancy began in December 2021, the driveway was in reasonable condition, however the property is low lying, and the driveway sits below the level of the surrounding lawns and is affected by drainage. As I understand it the issue comes in part due to the condition of a soak-pit at the road-end of the driveway which has blocked with debris and vegetation and requires work.
Over the course of the tenancy, Mr[The tenant/s], who is a drainlayer and an experienced contractor, has supplied and applied metal to the driveway and graded it. However, despite this work, by mid-2022, the driveway was badly pot- holed. In August 2022, the bottled gas supplier refused to continue the supply of gas for health and safety reasons to do with the condition of the driveway. In May 2024, in response to a query about items stolen from the roadside, NZPost confirmed that it was not delivering to the house due to the driveway.
The driveway was an issue as early as 21 December 2021, when the tenants emailed the landlord advising that a truck had got stuck on the driveway. On 8 September 2022, the tenants emailed the landlord with a proposal to fix the driveway, advising of the gas issue and that couriers were not willing to risk the driveway. There were further communications following this. However, it was not until July 2024, following a 14-day notice served by the tenants on 2 May 2024, that the landlord took steps to repair the driveway. The driveway was re- gravelled in early September 2024, although I note that the contractor who did the work says the work is a temporary repair and that the driveway needs to be rebuilt to address the drainage issues.
During the period in which the driveway was affected Ms [The tenant/s] had surgery and later suffered an injury which affected her mobility. During her recoveries potholes in the driveway made accessing the house painful. The water heating and cooking are via gas and the house is not connected to mains gas supply/ The inability to have gas delivered meant that the tenants had to purchase gas in bbq bottles at considerable extra cost. The tenants also say that their vehicles have all sustained damage or have had maintenance issues related to the rough nature of the driveway.
The landlord alleges that the tenants’ use of the driveway to park work vehicles, including trucks, has contributed to the state of the driveway, citing a request to the tenant not to do so in April 2024. The tenants responded that only smaller vehicles were left on the driveway, the larger trucks were parked on the road, and that the worst areas were beyond where the trucks were parked.
The tenants also allege that the landlord has not maintained the lawns and trees. The tenancy agreement records that the rent was reduced to allow for the tenant mowing the lawns using a ride-on mower provided by the landlord. The mower broke down in April 2022, and following this it appears that there was a loose agreement that the tenant would mow the lawns in the immediate vicinity of the house and the “paddock” area further away from the house would be mowed by a contractor paid by the landlord. The tenant says that the lawns and gardens were in poor condition when they moved in, and supplied photos showing the lawns slightly overgrown. The landlords’ response was that the photos appear to show what would be expected growth in the timeframe between the photos taken in the pre-tenancy report and the tenants’ photos.
The property has a number of large trees, and the maintenance of these trees is beyond the tenants’ duty for the maintenance of gardens. Despite this the tenant has on occasion pruned and trimmed trees for safety reasons. The issue was highlighted when in October 2024, a cabbage tree was blown down and damaged the tenants’ caravan. Early in the tenancy an arborist was sent to the property by the owner, without the landlord’s knowledge, advising that he had been instructed to remove trees to allow for subdivision. However, as discussed below, this work did not proceed. While there were no emails about the trees the tenant referred to having discussed the issues with the previous property manager.
The tenants also cited issues with gutters being blocked, and the tenants paid for the house to be pressure washed and gutters cleaned.
Under section 45, a landlord must provide and maintain the premises in a reasonable state of repair. This includes the driveway which is the only access to the property and the maintenance of the trees.
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.
With regard to the lawns, the gutters and house, I acknowledge that there were issues with maintenance. However, the delays in lawns and berms being maintained appear to be a contractor who was not doing the work they were employed to do. The gutters and house did not cause any issues for the tenants apart from being unsightly, and these issues were not raised with the landlord prior to the work being done.
The landlord failed to address the driveway issue for over two years, and this had real consequences for the tenants. The visit from the arborist at the start of the tenancy shows the owner was aware of tree maintenance issues. The tenant mentioned both issues in the 14-day notice and while the landlord did eventually address the driveway, the trees were not maintained, and damage eventuated. I find the landlord has committed unlawful acts by the delay in fixing the driveway, and by failing to maintain trees on the property.
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.
Considering, the requirements of 109(3)(a) to (d): a. The intent of the landlord is by inference to avoid paying to maintain the driveway. There may have been a communication issue between the owner and landlord with regard to the trees, however, I am satisfied that the landlord should have been aware that the trees were an issue which needed to be remedied. b. The effect of the driveway issues included; increased cost of heating water and cooking, damage to vehicles, pain and suffering due to the access issues following the surgery and injury, loss of amenity, and the tenants costs of maintain the driveway themselves. The tree maintenance issue caused unquantified damage to the tenants’ caravan. c. The interests of the tenant affected were the right to ease of access of their home, and the uncertainty of access in wet or wintery conditions. The tenants had concerns about the safety of their children and neighbours due to the condition of the trees d. The public interest is served when landlords take steps to address issues brought to their attention by tenants. The landlord sat on their hands with regard to the driveway issues for an unreasonably long period of time.
Taking into account the damage to the tenants vehicles, the gas issue, the access problems and the other factors, I order that the landlord is to pay $5000 exemplary damages. I note that this figure does not fully capture the tenants alleged losses, which are only partially quantified, nor does it capture that the landlord has not previously been before the Tribunal for similar issues. However, exemplary damages are intended to address unlawful behaviour, rather to compensate. The main behaviour in this case was the 2 years during which the landlord took no steps to address the driveway issue. Quiet enjoyment
[The tenant/s] claim the landlord has harassed them.
A landlord must not interfere with the reasonable peace, comfort or privacy of the tenant in their use of the premises. See section 38(2) Residential Tenancies Act 1986.
Breaching this obligation in circumstances that amount to harassment is an unlawful act for which exemplary damages may be awarded up to a maximum of $3,000.00. See section 38(3) and Schedule 1A RTA.
Harassment means "to trouble, worry or distress" or "to wear out, tire, or exhaust" and "indicates a particular pattern of behaviour directed towards another person". MacDonald v Dodds, CIV-2009-019-001524, DC Hamilton, 26 February 2010.
The incidents cited are the un-notified visit of an arborist early in the tenancy when [The tenant/s] was at home with her children, and an inspection which, due to an error did not occur at the scheduled time. She found these visits unsettling for three reasons; she has a complex PTSD condition, the tenants’ dogs are protective, and could cause harm to unexpectedly visitors, and, in the case of the arborist, the visitor was rude and abusive.
I note that the landlord apologies about the second incident, and was not aware of the arborist visit, not having been made aware by the owner. While I acknowledge the unsettling effect of these incidents, they do not constitute harassment. This is because there is no pattern; the first incident was a contractor arranged by the owner, the second was a planned inspection which occurred on the wrong date.

Tenancy Tribunal case 4890621 — Exemplary damages

At a glance

Tenancy Tribunal case 4890621 — Exemplary damages

At a glance

Claims & awards

Order

Reasons

Topics & place

Residential Tenancies Act sections

Key findings

Frequently asked questions

Claims & awards

Order

Reasons

Topics & place

Residential Tenancies Act sections

Key findings

Frequently asked questions