What was Tenancy Tribunal case 5175156 about?

The tribunal order states: [The tenant/s] must pay Seddon Street Property

How much money was awarded in case 5175156?

Filing Fee: $27.00 awarded to landlord; Property Damage: $3,000.00 awarded to landlord

What type of tenancy dispute was case 5175156?

The primary dispute was Property damage.

Where can I read the official tribunal order for case 5175156?

The official Ministry of Justice published order is available at https://forms.justice.govt.nz/search/Documents/TTV2/PDF/12111489-Tribunal_Order.pdf.

What was Tenancy Tribunal case 5175156 about?

The tribunal order states: [The tenant/s] must pay Seddon Street Property

How much money was awarded in case 5175156?

Filing Fee: $27.00 awarded to landlord; Property Damage: $3,000.00 awarded to landlord

What type of tenancy dispute was case 5175156?

The primary dispute was Property damage.

Where can I read the official tribunal order for case 5175156?

The official Ministry of Justice published order is available at https://forms.justice.govt.nz/search/Documents/TTV2/PDF/12111489-Tribunal_Order.pdf.

85 Strathmore Avenue, Levin, Levin 5510 Tenancy Tribunal Case 5175156 — Property damage

Claims and awards in Tenancy Tribunal application 5175156. Amounts reconciled from the published order (claims sum and net total). Verify on MoJ.
Claim	Landlord	Tenant	Reason
Repair/replace kitchen cupboard door	$3,000.00		Repair/replace kitchen cupboard door
Filing fee reimbursement	$27.00		Filing fee reimbursement

Order

[The tenant/s] must pay Seddon Street Property Management Limited As Agent For Mike Young $3,027.00 immediately, calculated as shown in table below.

Reasons

This is an amended order to be read alongside my previous order dated 10 April 2025.
In the “Reasons” section of that Order I assessed that Mr Thompson ought to pay a total of $3,000.00 for damages caused during his tenancy, plus a further $27.00 for the filing fee.
While the Order stated that Mr Thompson ought to pay that amount the table that went along with that Order calculated a different amount. That was in error. The correct amount that Mr Thompson is to pay is $3,027.00.
For ease of reference, below is a copy of the “Reasons” part of the Order dated 10 April 2025.
“ This application was scheduled to be heard by video conference. Mr Thompson did not link to the Teams link provided to him and nor did he answer the calls I made to two phone numbers provided to him. The hearing proceeded in his absence.
The landlord has applied for termination of the tenancy for rent arrears, rent arrears, compensation, payment of the bond, and reimbursement of the filing fee following the end of the tenancy.
At today’s hearing it was established that there was no rent arrears and so the landlord withdrew the application for termination and rent arrears.
What is evident, however, is that the premises have been damaged and that there is a significant amount of external rubbish. I shall take these claims in turn. Rubbish removal
Section 40(1)(c) of the Residential Tenancies Act 1986 provides that a tenant must keep the premises reasonably clean and tidy.
The photos show that there is a significant amount of rubbish at the premises and there is an estimate of $315.00 given for its removal. Damage
The landlord makes a claim for the cost of repairing the damage that has been incurred at the property.
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.
I accept the evidence that damage has occurred at this tenancy while Mr Thompson has been living there. I also accept that he has been given a number of chances to have this damage remedied but has not yet done so.
While the landlord has insurance, the excess payable for each damage is $2,000.00 – well above the actual cost of repair.
The damage is outlined in the table above.
An estimate to repair this damage comes to a total of $3,314.00. Estimate
An estimate has been provided to the landlord to remedy the damage and to remove the rubbish. This estimate totals $3,629.00.
Given that an estimate is not an exact science, at this stage I am ordering Mr Thompson to pay $3,000.00 towards the costs of remedying the damage and removing the rubbish. Filing fee reimbursement
I am also ordering Mr Thompson to reimburse the cost of filing this application to the landlord because the landlord was substantially successful in the claim against him. Payment plan
The landlord stated that they wished to enter a payment plan with the tenant. However the tenant did not attend today’s hearing and so such an arrangement could not be made.
The landlord advised that they remain open to a repayment plan and that could be arranged if the tenant contacts them to do so.” C ter Haar 14 July 2025

Claims and awards in Tenancy Tribunal application 5175156. Amounts reconciled from the published order (claims sum and net total). Verify on MoJ.
Claim	Landlord	Tenant	Reason
Repair/replace kitchen cupboard door	$3,000.00		Repair/replace kitchen cupboard door
Filing fee reimbursement	$27.00		Filing fee reimbursement

Order

[The tenant/s] must pay Seddon Street Property Management Limited As Agent For Mike Young $3,027.00 immediately, calculated as shown in table below.

Reasons

This is an amended order to be read alongside my previous order dated 10 April 2025.
In the “Reasons” section of that Order I assessed that Mr Thompson ought to pay a total of $3,000.00 for damages caused during his tenancy, plus a further $27.00 for the filing fee.
While the Order stated that Mr Thompson ought to pay that amount the table that went along with that Order calculated a different amount. That was in error. The correct amount that Mr Thompson is to pay is $3,027.00.
For ease of reference, below is a copy of the “Reasons” part of the Order dated 10 April 2025.
“ This application was scheduled to be heard by video conference. Mr Thompson did not link to the Teams link provided to him and nor did he answer the calls I made to two phone numbers provided to him. The hearing proceeded in his absence.
The landlord has applied for termination of the tenancy for rent arrears, rent arrears, compensation, payment of the bond, and reimbursement of the filing fee following the end of the tenancy.
At today’s hearing it was established that there was no rent arrears and so the landlord withdrew the application for termination and rent arrears.
What is evident, however, is that the premises have been damaged and that there is a significant amount of external rubbish. I shall take these claims in turn. Rubbish removal
Section 40(1)(c) of the Residential Tenancies Act 1986 provides that a tenant must keep the premises reasonably clean and tidy.
The photos show that there is a significant amount of rubbish at the premises and there is an estimate of $315.00 given for its removal. Damage
The landlord makes a claim for the cost of repairing the damage that has been incurred at the property.
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.
I accept the evidence that damage has occurred at this tenancy while Mr Thompson has been living there. I also accept that he has been given a number of chances to have this damage remedied but has not yet done so.
While the landlord has insurance, the excess payable for each damage is $2,000.00 – well above the actual cost of repair.
The damage is outlined in the table above.
An estimate to repair this damage comes to a total of $3,314.00. Estimate
An estimate has been provided to the landlord to remedy the damage and to remove the rubbish. This estimate totals $3,629.00.
Given that an estimate is not an exact science, at this stage I am ordering Mr Thompson to pay $3,000.00 towards the costs of remedying the damage and removing the rubbish. Filing fee reimbursement
I am also ordering Mr Thompson to reimburse the cost of filing this application to the landlord because the landlord was substantially successful in the claim against him. Payment plan
The landlord stated that they wished to enter a payment plan with the tenant. However the tenant did not attend today’s hearing and so such an arrangement could not be made.
The landlord advised that they remain open to a repayment plan and that could be arranged if the tenant contacts them to do so.” C ter Haar 14 July 2025

Tenancy Tribunal case 5175156 — Property damage at 85 Strathmore Avenue, Levin, Levin 5510

At a glance

Claims & awards

Tenancy Tribunal case 5175156 — Property damage at 85 Strathmore Avenue, Levin, Levin 5510

At a glance

Claims & awards

Order

Reasons

Topics & place

Residential Tenancies Act sections

Key findings

Property management

Frequently asked questions

Reduce avoidable tribunal risk with proper tenant checks.

Order

Reasons

Topics & place

Residential Tenancies Act sections

Key findings

Property management

Frequently asked questions

Reduce avoidable tribunal risk with proper tenant checks.