How much money was awarded in case 5259139?

Rent Arrears: $120.00 awarded to landlord; Stickers: $200.00 awarded to landlord

What type of tenancy dispute was case 5259139?

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

Where can I read the official tribunal order for case 5259139?

The official Ministry of Justice published order is available at https://forms.justice.govt.nz/search/Documents/TTV2/PDF/11880146-Tribunal_Order_Redacted.pdf.

How much money was awarded in case 5259139?

Rent Arrears: $120.00 awarded to landlord; Stickers: $200.00 awarded to landlord

What type of tenancy dispute was case 5259139?

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

Where can I read the official tribunal order for case 5259139?

The official Ministry of Justice published order is available at https://forms.justice.govt.nz/search/Documents/TTV2/PDF/11880146-Tribunal_Order_Redacted.pdf.

58 Easton Way, Levin, Levin 5510 Tenancy Tribunal Case 5259139 — Property damage

Q: What was Tenancy Tribunal case 5259139 about?

The tribunal order states: The Tribunal orders suppression of the parties’ names and identifying details.

Tenantcheck Insights

Order

Claims and awards in Tenancy Tribunal application 5259139 — net $320.00 NZD. Amounts reconciled from the published order (claims sum and net total). Verify on MoJ.
Claim	Landlord	Reason
Rent arrears	$120.00	Rent arrears
Repairs: Stickers	$200.00	Repairs: Stickers
Net award	$320.00
Bond	$2,880.00
Total payable by Tenant to Landlord	$320.00

The Tribunal orders suppression of the parties’ names and identifying details.

[The tenant/s] to pay [The landlord/s] $320.00 from the bond, calculated as shown in table below.

The Bond Centre is to pay the bond of $2,880.00 ([Bond number suppressed]) immediately apportioned as follows: [The landlord/s]: $320.00 [The tenant/s]: $2,560.00

Reasons

Both parties attended the hearing.

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

In considering the claims, the standard of proof is “on the balance of probabilities.” In other words, the landlord must establish with evidence that their claim is “more likely than not.” Each of the claims has been considered bearing in mind the standard of proof required.

While this order may not have referred to all the evidence presented at the hearing, the parties can be assured that it has all been considered.

How much is owed for rent?

The tenancy ended on 11 December 2024. The landlord provided rent records which prove the amount owing at the end of the tenancy.

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 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 claimed that the following damage was caused during the tenancy: a. Some pre-existing stickers were removed from two walls damaging the paintwork. b. Smoke had damaged the ceilings in the kitchen, hallway and lounge. c. The oven element was bent.

The tenant accepted responsibility for the removal of the stickers and consequent damage. The landlord has claimed $550.00 being its insurance excess for a job to stop 6 m2 of a wall and paint 15 m2 with three coats. The Tribunal regularly sees claims for this type of damage and invoices for the required repair. The Tribunal sees substantial holes in multiple walls where the cost of remediation is less than $550.00. The Tribunal therefore awards the landlord a sum commensurate with other invoices that it sees for similar work in this region.

The tenant denied causing any smoke damage to the property and advised that they rarely lit the fire and did not have any kitchen fires. The landlord’s evidence of the state of the ceilings at the start and at the end of the tenancy did not disclose any obvious damage. In the photographs the barely discernible discolouration in the ceiling was not noticeably worse at the end of the tenancy than at the beginning. On the evidence before the Tribunal, the landlord has failed to prove damage or that it occurred during the tenancy. The landlord’s claim is dismissed.

The Entry Inspection report prepared by the landlord’s property manager noted that the top oven element was bent. The accompanying photograph confirms this. As the damage was clearly not caused during the tenancy, the landlord’s claim is dismissed.

The landlord has had limited success in its application. The tenant has had equal success in defending the landlord’s claims. It is appropriate that the Tribunal exercises the discretion in section 95A(4) RTA and order that both parties’ names be suppressed.

Order

Claims and awards in Tenancy Tribunal application 5259139 — net $320.00 NZD. Amounts reconciled from the published order (claims sum and net total). Verify on MoJ.
Claim	Landlord	Reason
Rent arrears	$120.00	Rent arrears
Repairs: Stickers	$200.00	Repairs: Stickers
Net award	$320.00
Bond	$2,880.00
Total payable by Tenant to Landlord	$320.00

The Tribunal orders suppression of the parties’ names and identifying details.

[The tenant/s] to pay [The landlord/s] $320.00 from the bond, calculated as shown in table below.

The Bond Centre is to pay the bond of $2,880.00 ([Bond number suppressed]) immediately apportioned as follows: [The landlord/s]: $320.00 [The tenant/s]: $2,560.00

Reasons

Both parties attended the hearing.

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

While this order may not have referred to all the evidence presented at the hearing, the parties can be assured that it has all been considered.

How much is owed for rent?

The tenancy ended on 11 December 2024. The landlord provided rent records which prove the amount owing at the end of the tenancy.

Is the tenant responsible for the damage to the premises?

Tenancy Tribunal case 5259139 — Property damage at 58 Easton Way, Levin, Levin 5510

At a glance

Tenancy Tribunal case 5259139 — Property damage at 58 Easton Way, Levin, Levin 5510

At a glance

Award balance

Claims & awards

Order

Reasons

How much is owed for rent?

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

How much is owed for rent?

Is the tenant responsible for the damage to the premises?

Topics & place

Residential Tenancies Act sections

Key findings

Frequently asked questions