What was Tenancy Tribunal case 4918055 about?

The tribunal order states: The tenancy of Loita Esekia and Molipi Fakaapoga at [Tenancy address

How much money was awarded in case 4918055?

Property Damage: $400.00 awarded to landlord; Filing Fee: $20.44 awarded to landlord; Rent Arrears: $3,000.00 awarded to landlord

What type of tenancy dispute was case 4918055?

The primary dispute was Rent arrears. Related themes: Exemplary damages.

Where can I read the official tribunal order for case 4918055?

The official Ministry of Justice published order is available at https://forms.justice.govt.nz/search/Documents/TTV2/PDF/10654472-Tribunal_Order_Redacted.pdf.

What was Tenancy Tribunal case 4918055 about?

The tribunal order states: The tenancy of Loita Esekia and Molipi Fakaapoga at [Tenancy address

How much money was awarded in case 4918055?

Property Damage: $400.00 awarded to landlord; Filing Fee: $20.44 awarded to landlord; Rent Arrears: $3,000.00 awarded to landlord

What type of tenancy dispute was case 4918055?

The primary dispute was Rent arrears. Related themes: Exemplary damages.

Where can I read the official tribunal order for case 4918055?

The official Ministry of Justice published order is available at https://forms.justice.govt.nz/search/Documents/TTV2/PDF/10654472-Tribunal_Order_Redacted.pdf.

New Zealand Tenancy Tribunal Case 4918055 — Rent arrears

Tenantcheck Insights

Order

Claims and awards in Tenancy Tribunal application 4918055 — net $3,420.44 NZD. Amounts reconciled from the published order (claims sum and net total). Verify on MoJ.
Claim	Landlord	Reason
Rent arrears	$3,000.00	Rent arrears
Exemplary damages	$400.00	Exemplary damages
Filing fee reimbursement	$20.44	Filing fee reimbursement
Net award	$3,420.44
Total payable by Tenant to Landlord	$3,420.44

The tenancy of Loita Esekia and Molipi Fakaapoga at [Tenancy address suppressed] is terminated, and possession is granted to [The landlord/s], immediately.

Loita Esekia and Molipi Fakaapoga must pay [The landlord/s] $3,420.44 immediately, calculated as shown in the table below:

All other applications were withdrawn.

Reasons

Both parties attended the hearing.

The landlord has applied for termination of the tenancy for abandonment and exemplary damages. All other landlord applications were withdrawn by the landlord.

Should the tenancy be terminated?

The Tribunal may terminate the tenancy where the premises have been abandoned and rent is in arrear at the hearing date. See section 61 Residential Tenancies Act 1986. A tenancy is abandoned where the tenant leaves the premises without reasonable excuse, not intending to return or to meet their obligations, and fails to notify the landlord.

On 1 July 2024 the landlord became aware (or ought to have been aware) that the tenant had abandoned the premises. The landlord found the premises all but empty when visiting the premises. The tenant subsequently confirmed having left the premises.

As the premises have been abandoned, the tenancy is terminated immediately.

How much rent does the tenant owe?

The landlord provided rent records which prove the amount owing at the end of the tenancy. The amount ordered includes rent in lieu of notice of 28 days. The amount owing for the 28 days since 1July 2024 is $3,000.00. Exemplary damages

The landlord claims the tenant abandoned the premises.

A tenancy is abandoned where the tenant leaves the premises without reasonable excuse and fails to notify the landlord, not intending to return or to meet their obligations.

A tenant commits an unlawful act if they abandon the premises when the rent is in arrears. Exemplary damages may be awarded up to a maximum of $1,500.00. See section 61(5) and Schedule 1A Residential Tenancies Act 1986.

The tenant abandoned the premises on 1 July 2024. The rent was in arrears on that date. I find they have committed an unlawful act.

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.

In that regard, I note that it is the act itself that needs to be intentional, not an intention to act unlawfully.

The Tribunal’s usual approach to exemplary damages is to award one third of the maximum, unless there are aggravating or mitigating factors in play (see Wellington Property Management Limited v Hardie (2022) NZTT 4399281, 4374781).

The tenant has left the premises intentionally. There can be no question of this.

The tenant has paid the rent arrears up to and including the date on which they left the premises. I am not aware of any previous breaches by these tenants of this type. Those are mitigating factors.

It is in the best interests of all parties to a tenancy agreement for the tenant to give the appropriate notice to end a tenancy.

Having weighed those factors, I consider an award of exemplary damages at the lower end of the scale to be appropriate. The tenant is ordered to pay exemplary damages of $400.00.

As [The applicant/s] has wholly succeeded with the claim I must order the tenant to reimburse the filing fee.

Both parties applied for name suppression. The landlord has been wholly successful in this matter and suppression of the landlord name and details is ordered. The tenant has not been wholly or substantially successful and the tenant application is dismissed.

Order

Claims and awards in Tenancy Tribunal application 4918055 — net $3,420.44 NZD. Amounts reconciled from the published order (claims sum and net total). Verify on MoJ.
Claim	Landlord	Reason
Rent arrears	$3,000.00	Rent arrears
Exemplary damages	$400.00	Exemplary damages
Filing fee reimbursement	$20.44	Filing fee reimbursement
Net award	$3,420.44
Total payable by Tenant to Landlord	$3,420.44