How much money was awarded in case 5245011?

Property Damage: $1,050.00 awarded to landlord; Water Charges To End Of Tenancy: $334.91 awarded to landlord

What type of tenancy dispute was case 5245011?

The primary dispute was Property damage.

Where can I read the official tribunal order for case 5245011?

The official Ministry of Justice published order is available at https://forms.justice.govt.nz/search/Documents/TTV2/PDF/12265824-Tribunal_Order_Redacted.pdf.

How much money was awarded in case 5245011?

Property Damage: $1,050.00 awarded to landlord; Water Charges To End Of Tenancy: $334.91 awarded to landlord

What type of tenancy dispute was case 5245011?

The primary dispute was Property damage.

Where can I read the official tribunal order for case 5245011?

The official Ministry of Justice published order is available at https://forms.justice.govt.nz/search/Documents/TTV2/PDF/12265824-Tribunal_Order_Redacted.pdf.

New Zealand Tenancy Tribunal Case 5245011 — Property damage

Q: What was Tenancy Tribunal case 5245011 about?

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

Order

Claims and awards in Tenancy Tribunal application 5245011. Amounts reconciled from the published order (claims sum and net total). Verify on MoJ.
Claim	Landlord	Tenant	Reason
Window repair	$1,050.00		Window repair
Water charges to end of tenancy	$334.91		Water charges to end of tenancy
Bond		$3,080.00

An application for suppression has been made in this case, and the Tribunal orders suppression of the landlord’s and tenant’s names and identifying details.

The Bond Centre is to pay the bond of $3,080.00 ([Bond number suppressed]) immediately apportioned as follows: [The landlord/s]: $1,384.91 [The tenant/s]: $1,695.09

Reasons

Both parties attended the hearing today.

The landlord applied for the cost of repairs to windows and for water charges.

The tenant applied for refund of the bond.

The tenant did not dispute the water charges, which are awarded. The dispute was mainly about the window repairs. Damage to Windows

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.

The landlord submitted an invoice for $2,289.93. The work involved repairing a glass pane in a bedroom window together with a replacement window frame and replacing two glass panes in the lounge window. The tenant says that they only damaged one window and noted that the invoice is from an air conditioning company associated with the owner.

My understanding is that the window frame had to be replaced, due to its age, before the glass could be replaced. This was therefore maintenance work, and as such, the landlord’s responsibility. The tenant is not liable for the cost of maintenance. The invoice is not itemised, so the difficulty is how to apportion the invoice between tenant damage and landlord maintenance.

The Tribunal frequently sees claims for window repairs, and typically replacing a window can be achieved for a few hundred dollars. About $400.00 as an average cost would seem reasonable. The landlord indicated that this broadly accorded with their experience as professional property managers, where the cost is between $3-400.00. I will adopt a cost of $350.00 per glass pane.

The tenant said they only damaged the bedroom window, although she did not remember how the damage happened. The landlord provided an entry inspection report dated 30 October 2023, which makes no mention of cracked windows. The exit inspection report dated 2 April 2025 shows photographs of large cracks in the lounge window (83-Lounge-34 and 89-Lounge-40) and may show a missing window in another room (31-Exterior-31 and 32-Exterior-32). The landlord also provided “before and after” photographs of two windows.

On the balance of probabilities, I find that both windows were damaged during the tenancy. The tenant accepted that the bedroom window was damaged during the tenancy, and the exit report shows damage to the lounge window.

I have checked the Companies Register, and the air-conditioning company does not have any obvious relationship to the property owner. I am not persuaded that the cost claimed for the window repairs is excessive. I find that the tenant is liable for $1,050.00 ($350.00 per window) with the landlord responsible for the balance as a maintenance cost relating to the window frame. Rent Overpayment

In the application form, the tenant said she had overpaid the rent by 1½ weeks. She explained that the rent had been paid to her previous landlord by mistake. The tenant had to make catch up payments (these look to have occurred on 19 and 30 December 2023, when there were two extra payments of $400.00 each). The landlord’s rent summary shows that the rent was paid to the end of the tenancy.

The tenant confirmed that she had been able to recover the rent mistakenly paid to her previous landlord. I find that there has been no overpayment of rent by the tenant. Filing Fee and Name Suppression

Both parties have had some success. It is appropriate that they bear their own costs.

I grant suppression to both parties, as requested. The parties’ privacy interest outweighs any public interest in a case such as this, in my opinion.

Claims and awards in Tenancy Tribunal application 5245011. Amounts reconciled from the published order (claims sum and net total). Verify on MoJ.
Claim	Landlord	Tenant	Reason
Window repair	$1,050.00		Window repair
Water charges to end of tenancy	$334.91		Water charges to end of tenancy
Bond		$3,080.00

Order

An application for suppression has been made in this case, and the Tribunal orders suppression of the landlord’s and tenant’s names and identifying details.
The Bond Centre is to pay the bond of $3,080.00 ([Bond number suppressed]) immediately apportioned as follows: [The landlord/s]: $1,384.91 [The tenant/s]: $1,695.09

Reasons

Both parties attended the hearing today.
The landlord applied for the cost of repairs to windows and for water charges.
The tenant applied for refund of the bond.
The tenant did not dispute the water charges, which are awarded. The dispute was mainly about the window repairs. Damage to Windows
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.
The landlord submitted an invoice for $2,289.93. The work involved repairing a glass pane in a bedroom window together with a replacement window frame and replacing two glass panes in the lounge window. The tenant says that they only damaged one window and noted that the invoice is from an air conditioning company associated with the owner.
My understanding is that the window frame had to be replaced, due to its age, before the glass could be replaced. This was therefore maintenance work, and as such, the landlord’s responsibility. The tenant is not liable for the cost of maintenance. The invoice is not itemised, so the difficulty is how to apportion the invoice between tenant damage and landlord maintenance.
The Tribunal frequently sees claims for window repairs, and typically replacing a window can be achieved for a few hundred dollars. About $400.00 as an average cost would seem reasonable. The landlord indicated that this broadly accorded with their experience as professional property managers, where the cost is between $3-400.00. I will adopt a cost of $350.00 per glass pane.
The tenant said they only damaged the bedroom window, although she did not remember how the damage happened. The landlord provided an entry inspection report dated 30 October 2023, which makes no mention of cracked windows. The exit inspection report dated 2 April 2025 shows photographs of large cracks in the lounge window (83-Lounge-34 and 89-Lounge-40) and may show a missing window in another room (31-Exterior-31 and 32-Exterior-32). The landlord also provided “before and after” photographs of two windows.
On the balance of probabilities, I find that both windows were damaged during the tenancy. The tenant accepted that the bedroom window was damaged during the tenancy, and the exit report shows damage to the lounge window.
I have checked the Companies Register, and the air-conditioning company does not have any obvious relationship to the property owner. I am not persuaded that the cost claimed for the window repairs is excessive. I find that the tenant is liable for $1,050.00 ($350.00 per window) with the landlord responsible for the balance as a maintenance cost relating to the window frame. Rent Overpayment
In the application form, the tenant said she had overpaid the rent by 1½ weeks. She explained that the rent had been paid to her previous landlord by mistake. The tenant had to make catch up payments (these look to have occurred on 19 and 30 December 2023, when there were two extra payments of $400.00 each). The landlord’s rent summary shows that the rent was paid to the end of the tenancy.
The tenant confirmed that she had been able to recover the rent mistakenly paid to her previous landlord. I find that there has been no overpayment of rent by the tenant. Filing Fee and Name Suppression
Both parties have had some success. It is appropriate that they bear their own costs.
I grant suppression to both parties, as requested. The parties’ privacy interest outweighs any public interest in a case such as this, in my opinion.

Tenancy Tribunal case 5245011 — Property damage

At a glance

Tenancy Tribunal case 5245011 — Property damage

At a glance

Claims & awards

Order

Reasons

Topics & place

Residential Tenancies Act sections

Key findings

Frequently asked questions

Claims & awards

Order

Reasons

Topics & place

Residential Tenancies Act sections

Key findings

Frequently asked questions