What was Tenancy Tribunal case 5122189 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 5122189?

Broken Door Lock And Paint: $134.06 awarded to landlord; Cleaning: $2,437.50 awarded to landlord; Filing Fee: $27.00 awarded to landlord; Loss Of Rent (Two Weeks: $1,440.00 awarded to landlord; Lost Rent: $1,440.00 awarded to landlord; Property Damage: $75.00 awarded to landlord; Replace Furnishings: Carpet Mats: $415.00 awarded to landlord; Replace furnishings: curtain railing…: $47.00 awarded to landlord

What type of tenancy dispute was case 5122189?

The primary dispute was Cleanliness. Related themes: Lost Rent, Property damage.

Where can I read the official tribunal order for case 5122189?

The official Ministry of Justice published order is available at https://forms.justice.govt.nz/search/Documents/TTV2/PDF/11900167-Tribunal_Order_Redacted.pdf.

What was Tenancy Tribunal case 5122189 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 5122189?

Broken Door Lock And Paint: $134.06 awarded to landlord; Cleaning: $2,437.50 awarded to landlord; Filing Fee: $27.00 awarded to landlord; Loss Of Rent (Two Weeks: $1,440.00 awarded to landlord; Lost Rent: $1,440.00 awarded to landlord; Property Damage: $75.00 awarded to landlord; Replace Furnishings: Carpet Mats: $415.00 awarded to landlord; Replace furnishings: curtain railing…: $47.00 awarded to landlord

What type of tenancy dispute was case 5122189?

The primary dispute was Cleanliness. Related themes: Lost Rent, Property damage.

Where can I read the official tribunal order for case 5122189?

The official Ministry of Justice published order is available at https://forms.justice.govt.nz/search/Documents/TTV2/PDF/11900167-Tribunal_Order_Redacted.pdf.

New Zealand Tenancy Tribunal Case 5122189 — Cleanliness

Reasons

Claims and awards in Tenancy Tribunal application 5122189 — net $6,015.56 NZD. Amounts reconciled from the published order (claims sum and net total). Verify on MoJ.
Claim	Landlord	Reason
Repairs to walls and cleaning (supply and labour	$2,437.50	Repairs to walls and cleaning (supply and labour
Loss of rent (two weeks	$1,440.00	Loss of rent (two weeks
Replace furnishings: curtain railings	$47.00	Replace furnishings: curtain railings
Replace furnishings: carpet mats	$415.00	Replace furnishings: carpet mats
Window repairs	$75.00	Window repairs
Broken door lock and paint	$134.06	Broken door lock and paint
Lost rent due to damages	$1,440.00	Lost rent due to damages
Filing fee reimbursement	$27.00	Filing fee reimbursement
Net award	$6,015.56
Total payable by Tenant to Landlord	$6,015.56

The landlord attended the hearing. The tenant did not attend and did not respond when telephoned on the number ending in 104.

The landlord has applied for compensation and reimbursement of the filing fee following the end of the tenancy.

Did the tenant comply with their obligations at the end of the tenancy?

At the end of the tenancy the tenant must leave the premises reasonably clean and tidy, remove all rubbish, return all keys and security devices, and leave all chattels provided for their benefit. See section 40(1)(e)(ii)-(v) Residential Tenancies Act 1986. The tenant is required to replace worn out smoke alarm batteries during the tenancy. See section 40(1)(ca) Residential Tenancies Act 1986. The tenant must also replace standard light bulbs.

The tenant did not leave the premises reasonably clean and tidy and did not remove all rubbish.

The landlord says they spent significant time cleaning the property. They have claimed for 85 hours at $23.50 an hour. However, this time also includes work as a result of alleged damage to the property and so I consider the total amount further below.

In the absence of any evidence to the contrary, I accept the landlords claim for the cleaning portion of this time.

Is the tenant responsible for the damage to the premises?

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 careless, and occurs after 27 August 2019, section 49B RTA applies. If the landlord becomes aware of the damage after 27 August, the damage is presumed to have occurred after that date unless the tenant proves otherwise.

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 landlord claims that there was significant damage causing during the tenancy throughout the property and in particular to the walls, carpets, and windows, as well as missing curtain railings. Some of this damage was caused by the tenant having six dogs at the property when the tenancy agreement only allowed for one dog. The landlord has provided photographs of the property prior to the tenancy, together with photographs of the dogs.

The landlords say that they undertook the work themselves to minimise costs but had to spent 85 hours patching and repainting the damaged walls repairing and cleaning carpets (instead of a full replacement that was quoted at over $5,000.00), replacing broken windows, replacing the damaged locks, installing new smoke alarms fixing the garden and lawns (animal damage) and general cleaning and property restoration. They have provided invoices for most items and the break down of costs incurred is as follows: a. Paint supplies $170.74. b. Cleaning supplies $90.26. c. Paint (white) $179.00. d. Door lock and additional paint (black) $134.06. e. Curtain rails $47.00. f. Carpet mats $415.00. g. Replacement glass (window repairs) $75.00. h. Labour $1,997.50 (includes cleaning and all repairs).

I am satisfied that this damage more likely than not occurred during the tenancy.

The following damage was caused during the tenancy: walls and doors, carpets, glass, curtain rails. The damage is more than fair wear and tear, and the tenant has not disproved liability for the damage.

The landlord also claims for two weeks rent because of the level of damage caused to the property and the inability to inhabit or rent the property out while they remedied the damage. The weekly rent is $720.00, and the amount claimed is $1,440.00. This is a reasonable and foreseeable loss caused by the tenant’s actions.

The amounts ordered are proved.

Because [The applicant/s] has wholly succeeded with the claim I must also reimburse the filing fee. R Harvey-Lane 27 May 2025

Claims and awards in Tenancy Tribunal application 5122189 — net $6,015.56 NZD. Amounts reconciled from the published order (claims sum and net total). Verify on MoJ.
Claim	Landlord	Reason
Repairs to walls and cleaning (supply and labour	$2,437.50	Repairs to walls and cleaning (supply and labour
Loss of rent (two weeks	$1,440.00	Loss of rent (two weeks
Replace furnishings: curtain railings	$47.00	Replace furnishings: curtain railings
Replace furnishings: carpet mats	$415.00	Replace furnishings: carpet mats
Window repairs	$75.00	Window repairs
Broken door lock and paint	$134.06	Broken door lock and paint
Lost rent due to damages	$1,440.00	Lost rent due to damages
Filing fee reimbursement	$27.00	Filing fee reimbursement
Net award	$6,015.56
Total payable by Tenant to Landlord	$6,015.56

Order

An application for suppression has been made in this case, and the Tribunal orders suppression of the landlord’s name and identifying details.
Jenai Orupe must pay [The landlord/s] $3,333.56 immediately, as calculated in the table below:

Reasons

The landlord attended the hearing. The tenant did not attend and did not respond when telephoned on the number ending in 104.
The landlord has applied for compensation and reimbursement of the filing fee following the end of the tenancy.

Did the tenant comply with their obligations at the end of the tenancy?

At the end of the tenancy the tenant must leave the premises reasonably clean and tidy, remove all rubbish, return all keys and security devices, and leave all chattels provided for their benefit. See section 40(1)(e)(ii)-(v) Residential Tenancies Act 1986. The tenant is required to replace worn out smoke alarm batteries during the tenancy. See section 40(1)(ca) Residential Tenancies Act 1986. The tenant must also replace standard light bulbs.
The tenant did not leave the premises reasonably clean and tidy and did not remove all rubbish.
The landlord says they spent significant time cleaning the property. They have claimed for 85 hours at $23.50 an hour. However, this time also includes work as a result of alleged damage to the property and so I consider the total amount further below.
In the absence of any evidence to the contrary, I accept the landlords claim for the cleaning portion of this time.

Is the tenant responsible for the damage to the premises?

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 careless, and occurs after 27 August 2019, section 49B RTA applies. If the landlord becomes aware of the damage after 27 August, the damage is presumed to have occurred after that date unless the tenant proves otherwise.
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 landlord claims that there was significant damage causing during the tenancy throughout the property and in particular to the walls, carpets, and windows, as well as missing curtain railings. Some of this damage was caused by the tenant having six dogs at the property when the tenancy agreement only allowed for one dog. The landlord has provided photographs of the property prior to the tenancy, together with photographs of the dogs.
The landlords say that they undertook the work themselves to minimise costs but had to spent 85 hours patching and repainting the damaged walls repairing and cleaning carpets (instead of a full replacement that was quoted at over $5,000.00), replacing broken windows, replacing the damaged locks, installing new smoke alarms fixing the garden and lawns (animal damage) and general cleaning and property restoration. They have provided invoices for most items and the break down of costs incurred is as follows: a. Paint supplies $170.74. b. Cleaning supplies $90.26. c. Paint (white) $179.00. d. Door lock and additional paint (black) $134.06. e. Curtain rails $47.00. f. Carpet mats $415.00. g. Replacement glass (window repairs) $75.00. h. Labour $1,997.50 (includes cleaning and all repairs).
I am satisfied that this damage more likely than not occurred during the tenancy.
The following damage was caused during the tenancy: walls and doors, carpets, glass, curtain rails. The damage is more than fair wear and tear, and the tenant has not disproved liability for the damage.
The landlord also claims for two weeks rent because of the level of damage caused to the property and the inability to inhabit or rent the property out while they remedied the damage. The weekly rent is $720.00, and the amount claimed is $1,440.00. This is a reasonable and foreseeable loss caused by the tenant’s actions.
The amounts ordered are proved.
Because [The applicant/s] has wholly succeeded with the claim I must also reimburse the filing fee. R Harvey-Lane 27 May 2025

Tenancy Tribunal case 5122189 — Cleanliness

At a glance

Tenancy Tribunal case 5122189 — Cleanliness

At a glance

Award balance

Claims & awards

Order

Reasons

Did the tenant comply with their obligations at the end of the tenancy?

Is the tenant responsible for the damage to the premises?

Topics & place

Residential Tenancies Act sections

Key findings

Frequently asked questions

Award balance

Claims & awards

Order

Reasons

Did the tenant comply with their obligations at the end of the tenancy?

Is the tenant responsible for the damage to the premises?

Topics & place

Residential Tenancies Act sections

Key findings

Frequently asked questions