How much money was awarded in case 5093028?

Property Damage: $149.50 awarded to landlord; Rent Arrears: $821.00 awarded to landlord

What type of tenancy dispute was case 5093028?

The primary dispute was Rent arrears. Related themes: Property damage.

Where can I read the official tribunal order for case 5093028?

The official Ministry of Justice published order is available at https://forms.justice.govt.nz/search/Documents/TTV2/PDF/11850657-Tribunal_Order_Redacted.pdf.

How much money was awarded in case 5093028?

Property Damage: $149.50 awarded to landlord; Rent Arrears: $821.00 awarded to landlord

What type of tenancy dispute was case 5093028?

The primary dispute was Rent arrears. Related themes: Property damage.

Where can I read the official tribunal order for case 5093028?

The official Ministry of Justice published order is available at https://forms.justice.govt.nz/search/Documents/TTV2/PDF/11850657-Tribunal_Order_Redacted.pdf.

New Zealand Tenancy Tribunal Case 5093028 — Rent arrears

Q: What was Tenancy Tribunal case 5093028 about?

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

Tenantcheck Insights

Order

Claims and awards in Tenancy Tribunal application 5093028 — net $970.50 NZD. Amounts reconciled from the published order (claims sum and net total). Verify on MoJ.
Claim	Landlord	Reason
Rent arrears BY CONSENT to 13 November 2024	$821.00	Rent arrears BY CONSENT to 13 November 2024
Lock/key replacement BY CONSENT	$149.50	Lock/key replacement BY CONSENT
Net award	$970.50
Bond	$970.50
Total payable by Tenant to Landlord	$970.50

An application for suppression has been made in this case, and the Tribunal orders on an interim basis suppression of the tenant’s name and identifying details.

BY CONSENT: [The tenant/s] to pay Mills Gibbon & Co Ltd T/A First National Collective As Agent For Krt Property Investment Ltd $970.50 from the bond, calculated as shown in table below.

BY CONSENT: The Bond Centre is to pay the bond of $970.50 ([Bond number suppressed]) to Mills Gibbon & Co Ltd T/A First National Collective As Agent For Krt Property Investment Ltd immediately. The Bond Centre is to hold the remainder of the bond pending further order or agreement made in writing by the parties.

The application is referred to mediation at the agreement of the parties.

A further hearing can be scheduled if the matter is not resolved.

Reasons

Both parties attended the hearing by telephone. It was a case management hearing to identify the claims and clarify them. There is an application by the landlord and an application by the tenant. Agreement reached

The landlord’s claim for $821 for rent arrears to the end of the tenancy and $149.50 for the replacement of a remote were agreed to by the tenant.

It was agreed these sums could be released from the bond. This has therefore been ordered. The remainder of the bond ($1,149.50) will remain on hold pending further order or agreement reached by the parties (in writing). The landlord claims

The landlord’s application consists of the following remaining claims: a. Cleaning $305 b. Carpet cleaning $444 c. Sticker removal - $206.42 d. Carpet replacement (lounge, bedrooms, hall) - $4,226.59 e. Painting due to holes in wall, paint on window ledge, stickers and drawings - $742.33 f. Curtain replacement - $61.44. The tenant claims

The tenant claims compensation of $7,200 as she says that the landlord has: a. Breached the Healthy Homes heating standard – she says the heater in the lounge was not the right capacity b. Failed to maintain and breached the Healthy Homes Standards by her not having a heater in her lounge for a period c. Failed to maintain and breached the healthy homes standards as a result of a window in a bedroom not closing allowing a draught. The law Burden of proof

As with any claim before the Tenancy Tribunal, the Tribunal applies the usual civil law standards and expectations. That means that it is for the party bringing the application to establish their claims “on the balance of probabilities.” That means that in this case the tenant must establish that what they are claiming is more likely than not and similarly, the landlord must establish that what they are claiming is more likely than not.

The balance of probabilities means more likely than unlikely, or in mathematical terms, has a fractionally more than 50% likelihood. The Tribunal does not need to be certain or very sure about any claim, only that what is claimed is likely. I do not need to be completely certain, but I need to be more certain than uncertain. In deciding any claim, I must consider all the evidence presented (including oral evidence during the hearing). I must weigh this evidence to decide what is more likely.

This is referred to as the “burden of proof.” Independent witnesses, corroborating documents and photographs may be an important part of discharging this burden. Ultimately however, it is for the party making the application to decide what evidence to put before the Tribunal.

As noted in Kaipo v Clarke & McCarthy (DC) TT233/02, in practical terms this means that: “like anyone who brings an application before a Tribunal or Court, it is incumbent upon the applicant to provide the evidence necessary to prove the case. If the applicant fails to do that, then their application will be dismissed whether it has merit or not because it is up to the applicant to provide the necessary evidence. It is not up to the other parties, and it is certainly not up to the Tribunal to extract evidence.” Cleaning

At the end of the tenancy the tenant must leave the premises reasonably clean and tidy. See section 40(1)(e)(iii) Residential Tenancies Act 1986 (RTA).

It is important to note that the RTA does not require the premises to be returned in an immaculate condition, only in a reasonably clean and tidy state. There is no scientific way to determine what is ‘reasonably’ clean and tidy, what is required is for the Tribunal to evaluate the evidence available (particularly photographs presented), and then to determine whether the premises would be reasonably clean. The Tribunal will also take into account factors such as the length of the tenancy, and the general condition of the premises. For example, surfaces that are new and in a good condition will be easier to clean than older and worn surfaces, particular with paint work. Damage

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. See sections 40(2)(a), 41 and 49B RTA.

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 (or four weeks' market rent in the case of a tenant paying income-related rent). See section 49B(3)(a) RTA.

Where the damage is careless and is not covered by the landlord's insurance, the tenant's liability is limited to four weeks' rent (or market rent). See section 49B(3)(b) RTA. 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.

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.

Damage is intentional where a person intends to cause damage and takes the necessary steps to achieve that purpose. Damage is also intentional where a person does something, or allows a situation to continue, knowing that damage is a certainty. See Guo v Korck [2019] NZHC 1541.

The Tribunal will take into account betterment and depreciation. The landlord should be returned to the position they would have been in had the tenant not breached their obligations, and should not be better or worse off. In calculating depreciation, the age and condition of the items at the start of the tenancy and their likely useful lifespan are relevant factors. Failure to maintain

Under section 45(1)(a)-(ca) RTA the landlord has an obligation to provide and maintain certain standards and to comply with applicable requirements. A landlord must: Provide and maintain the premises in a reasonable state of repair having regard to the age and character of the premises and the period during which the premises are likely to remain habitable and available for residential purposes (s 45(1)(b), RTA).

It is well settled that, the landlord’s obligation under s 45 RTA is to investigate and repair a defect brought to their attention within a timeframe which is reasonable in the circumstances, and as to what that time is, depends on the gravity of the problem but also on the objective attempts made by the landlord to investigate, and put right, whatever the problem might be. A tenant should promptly notify a landlord of any defects and a landlord should be given a reasonable opportunity to remedy the defect before being liable for any failure to do so.

The Tribunal in Marks v Godfrey 15/01390, HN 25/08/2015 and [Suppressed] [2021] NZTT 4293251 noted that all properties should be checked regularly and maintained as required. There should be preventative maintenance as well as repair. This is implicit in the requirement in s.45(1)(b) that the landlord provide and maintain (my underlining) the premises in a reasonable state of repair.

Section 40 of the RTA sets out the tenant’s responsibilities, and that includes an obligation to notify the landlord, as soon as possible after the discovery of the need for repairs to the premises.

The RTA also provides a mechanism for tenants to raise work required at the premises more formally with the landlord, and if the landlord does not comply with that notice, to escalate the matter to the Tenancy Tribunal for orders. In particular tenants are able to provide the landlord with a breach notice (a 14 day notice and if work is not completed in a timely way, tenants can seek a work order from the Tenancy Tribunal which would require the landlord to remedy the breach. That is consistent with section 49 which places a duty to mitigate on the parties, that provision holds: Where any party to a tenancy agreement breaches any of the provisions of the agreement or of this Act, the other party shall take all reasonable steps to limit the damage or loss arising from that breach, in accordance with the rules of law relating to mitigation of loss or damage upon breach of contract. Healthy Homes – Heating and draught stopping standard

Under section 45(1)(bb) a landlord has an obligation to comply with the healthy homes standards. The tenant says the landlord breached the heating standard and the draught stopping standard.

The heating standard requires landlords to provide one or more ‘qualifying heaters’, with a capacity to heat the living room to a required level. The heating standard defines what a qualifying heater would be and confirms that certain types of heaters are unacceptable heaters for the purpose of the HHS.

The heating standard requires that heaters in the particular tenancy have a minimum heating capacity. An on-line calculator has been produced in order to determine what level of heating is required for any particular premises. The HHS does provide exemptions in specific circumstances.

To meet the healthy homes draught stopping standard a landlord needs to block unreasonable gaps or holes that allow draughts into or out of the home that are not intentional parts of the construction of the premises (such as drainage and ventilation openings). Next steps

The parties agreed to continue their discussions together about whether matters might compromise.

The parties are also wiling for the matter to be referred to mediation. The matter is therefore referred to mediation.

If the parties reach an agreement before a mediation can take place they can a) either advise Tenancy Services that they no longer need the case to continue (and arrange for any appropriate release of the bond between themselves) or b) can proceed to have any agreement formalised in a Tribunal order at mediation.

If no agreement takes place the matter will proceed to a full hearing before me.

The parties should provide to the Hawera Tenancy Tribunal all paperwork they want to rely on at any further hearing at least 5 days prior to the next hearing. This documentation can be filed by email or two copies filed in hard copy at the Hawera Tenancy Tribunal.

The next hearing will take place by way of video conference (Microsoft Teams). Tenancy Services will advise the parties of the date of the mediation/any future hearing if needed. Suppression

The Tribunal must, on the application of a party that has wholly or substantially succeeded in proceedings, order that the party’s name or identifying particulars not be published, unless the Tribunal considers that publication is in the public interest or is justified because of the party’s conduct or any other circumstances of the case (s95A, RTA).

At the moment I do not know which party (if any) will be wholly or substantially successful.

The tenant seeks name suppression and therefore I have made an order for interim name suppression for the tenant until further order.

The landlord does not seek suppression so I have not ordered this.

Order

Claims and awards in Tenancy Tribunal application 5093028 — net $970.50 NZD. Amounts reconciled from the published order (claims sum and net total). Verify on MoJ.
Claim	Landlord	Reason
Rent arrears BY CONSENT to 13 November 2024	$821.00	Rent arrears BY CONSENT to 13 November 2024
Lock/key replacement BY CONSENT	$149.50	Lock/key replacement BY CONSENT
Net award	$970.50
Bond	$970.50
Total payable by Tenant to Landlord	$970.50