What was Tenancy Tribunal case 5212792 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 5212792?

Filing Fee: $27.00 awarded to landlord; Property Damage: $3,240.00 awarded to landlord; Rent: $2,460.00 awarded to landlord; Rubbish Removal: $5,485.50 awarded to landlord; Skip Bins: $539.90 awarded to landlord; Water Charges For January 2025: $687.54 awarded to landlord

What type of tenancy dispute was case 5212792?

The primary dispute was Property damage.

Where can I read the official tribunal order for case 5212792?

The official Ministry of Justice published order is available at https://forms.justice.govt.nz/search/Documents/TTV2/PDF/11958553-Tribunal_Order_Redacted.pdf.

What was Tenancy Tribunal case 5212792 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 5212792?

Filing Fee: $27.00 awarded to landlord; Property Damage: $3,240.00 awarded to landlord; Rent: $2,460.00 awarded to landlord; Rubbish Removal: $5,485.50 awarded to landlord; Skip Bins: $539.90 awarded to landlord; Water Charges For January 2025: $687.54 awarded to landlord

What type of tenancy dispute was case 5212792?

The primary dispute was Property damage.

Where can I read the official tribunal order for case 5212792?

The official Ministry of Justice published order is available at https://forms.justice.govt.nz/search/Documents/TTV2/PDF/11958553-Tribunal_Order_Redacted.pdf.

New Zealand Tenancy Tribunal Case 5212792 — Property damage

Reasons

Claims and awards in Tenancy Tribunal application 5212792 — net $9,439.94 NZD. Amounts reconciled from the published order (claims sum and net total). Verify on MoJ.
Claim	Landlord	Reason
Rent to 9 March 2025	$2,460.00	Rent to 9 March 2025
Water charges for January 2025	$687.54	Water charges for January 2025
Rubbish removal, locks, painting, blinds, etc	$5,485.50	Rubbish removal, locks, painting, blinds, etc
Carpet replacement	$3,240.00	Carpet replacement
Skip bins	$539.90	Skip bins
Filing fee reimbursement	$27.00	Filing fee reimbursement
Net award	$9,439.94
Total payable by Tenant to Landlord	$9,439.94

The landlord attended the hearing today.

The landlord has applied for rent arrears, outgoings, compensation, refund of the bond, and reimbursement of the filing fee following the end of the tenancy. Rent and Water

The landlord said the tenant abandoned the premises. That is certainly consistent with the landlord’s photographs. The landlord said they discovered the abandonment on about 17 February 2025. Pursuant to section 61(3)(a) of the Residential Tenancies Act 1986, the landlords were entitled to rent for 3 weeks from that date (the law provided for 4 weeks of rent in lieu of notice prior to 30 January 2025). The landlords have claimed rent to 9 March 2025 in the sum of $2,460.00. This is awarded.

The landlord provided rent records and a water invoice which prove the amount owing at the end of the tenancy. Rubbish, Locks, Blinds

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.

The tenant did not remove their belongings or the rubbish. The premises were left in a poor state. The photographs suggest the tenants left everything behind. There was a considerable quantity of hard rubbish. I award the cost of skip bins and labour for rubbish removal ($575.00). The charges are very reasonable in the circumstances.

The tenant did not return the keys. The locks had to be changed to make the premises secure ($425.50).

There were blinds missing at the end of the tenancy. I award the replacement cost ($517.50). Tenant 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.

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.

Where the damage is careless and is not covered by the landlord's insurance, the tenant's liability is limited to four weeks' rent. This applies to each act or omission causing damage.

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.

The landlord’s photographs show areas of damage to walls and doors. The most significant damage was to the skirting and lower wall in the hallway.

The landlord claimed the cost of repainting the premises ($2,070.00). The visible damage to the walls and doors does not obviously justify repainting the entire house. However, the landlords said they did most of the painting themselves, to keep costs low, and in my view the painting cost reflects this. I have noted above that the landlords might have been entitled to more rent than has been claimed (they also indicated that the property took 2 months to remediate). In all the circumstances, I consider it is in accordance with the substantial merits and justice of the case to award the painting costs.

The landlords also had to replace the carpet. They said the tenant left the windows open and the carpet got wet. This is not visible in the photographs but given the general condition of the premises, it can be readily inferred that the carpet needed replacing. The landlords said they tried to clean the carpet, but it was infested by insects and could not be saved.

The damage is more than fair wear and tear, and the tenant has not disproved liability for the damage. Filing Fee and Suppression

The landlords’ application has succeeded. I award the filing fee.

The landlords are granted name suppression as requested.

Claims and awards in Tenancy Tribunal application 5212792 — net $9,439.94 NZD. Amounts reconciled from the published order (claims sum and net total). Verify on MoJ.
Claim	Landlord	Reason
Rent to 9 March 2025	$2,460.00	Rent to 9 March 2025
Water charges for January 2025	$687.54	Water charges for January 2025
Rubbish removal, locks, painting, blinds, etc	$5,485.50	Rubbish removal, locks, painting, blinds, etc
Carpet replacement	$3,240.00	Carpet replacement
Skip bins	$539.90	Skip bins
Filing fee reimbursement	$27.00	Filing fee reimbursement
Net award	$9,439.94
Total payable by Tenant to Landlord	$9,439.94

Order

An application for suppression has been made in this case, and the Tribunal orders suppression of the landlord’s name and identifying details.
Raywyn Hata Mathews must pay [The landlord/s] $9,439.94 immediately, calculated as shown in the table below.

Reasons

The landlord attended the hearing today.
The landlord has applied for rent arrears, outgoings, compensation, refund of the bond, and reimbursement of the filing fee following the end of the tenancy. Rent and Water
The landlord said the tenant abandoned the premises. That is certainly consistent with the landlord’s photographs. The landlord said they discovered the abandonment on about 17 February 2025. Pursuant to section 61(3)(a) of the Residential Tenancies Act 1986, the landlords were entitled to rent for 3 weeks from that date (the law provided for 4 weeks of rent in lieu of notice prior to 30 January 2025). The landlords have claimed rent to 9 March 2025 in the sum of $2,460.00. This is awarded.
The landlord provided rent records and a water invoice which prove the amount owing at the end of the tenancy. Rubbish, Locks, Blinds
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.
The tenant did not remove their belongings or the rubbish. The premises were left in a poor state. The photographs suggest the tenants left everything behind. There was a considerable quantity of hard rubbish. I award the cost of skip bins and labour for rubbish removal ($575.00). The charges are very reasonable in the circumstances.
The tenant did not return the keys. The locks had to be changed to make the premises secure ($425.50).
There were blinds missing at the end of the tenancy. I award the replacement cost ($517.50). Tenant 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.
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.
Where the damage is careless and is not covered by the landlord's insurance, the tenant's liability is limited to four weeks' rent. This applies to each act or omission causing damage.
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.
The landlord’s photographs show areas of damage to walls and doors. The most significant damage was to the skirting and lower wall in the hallway.
The landlord claimed the cost of repainting the premises ($2,070.00). The visible damage to the walls and doors does not obviously justify repainting the entire house. However, the landlords said they did most of the painting themselves, to keep costs low, and in my view the painting cost reflects this. I have noted above that the landlords might have been entitled to more rent than has been claimed (they also indicated that the property took 2 months to remediate). In all the circumstances, I consider it is in accordance with the substantial merits and justice of the case to award the painting costs.
The landlords also had to replace the carpet. They said the tenant left the windows open and the carpet got wet. This is not visible in the photographs but given the general condition of the premises, it can be readily inferred that the carpet needed replacing. The landlords said they tried to clean the carpet, but it was infested by insects and could not be saved.
The damage is more than fair wear and tear, and the tenant has not disproved liability for the damage. Filing Fee and Suppression
The landlords’ application has succeeded. I award the filing fee.
The landlords are granted name suppression as requested.

Tenancy Tribunal case 5212792 — Property damage

At a glance

Tenancy Tribunal case 5212792 — Property damage

At a glance

Award balance

Claims & awards

Order

Reasons

Topics & place

Residential Tenancies Act sections

Key findings

Frequently asked questions

Award balance

Claims & awards

Order

Reasons

Topics & place

Residential Tenancies Act sections

Key findings

Frequently asked questions