What was Tenancy Tribunal case 5285321 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 5285321?

Filing Fee: $27.00 awarded to landlord; Property Damage: $800.00 awarded to landlord; Property Damage: $253.00 awarded to landlord; Rent Arrears: $785.70 awarded to landlord; Water Rates: $64.11 awarded to landlord

What type of tenancy dispute was case 5285321?

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

Where can I read the official tribunal order for case 5285321?

The official Ministry of Justice published order is available at https://forms.justice.govt.nz/search/Documents/TTV2/PDF/12435966-Tribunal_Order_Redacted.pdf.

What was Tenancy Tribunal case 5285321 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 5285321?

Filing Fee: $27.00 awarded to landlord; Property Damage: $800.00 awarded to landlord; Property Damage: $253.00 awarded to landlord; Rent Arrears: $785.70 awarded to landlord; Water Rates: $64.11 awarded to landlord

What type of tenancy dispute was case 5285321?

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

Where can I read the official tribunal order for case 5285321?

The official Ministry of Justice published order is available at https://forms.justice.govt.nz/search/Documents/TTV2/PDF/12435966-Tribunal_Order_Redacted.pdf.

New Zealand Tenancy Tribunal Case 5285321 — Property damage

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New Zealand Tenancy Tribunal Case 5285321 — Property damage | TenantCheck

Claims & awards

What this tenancy cost at tribunal — claim, category, amount, and party awarded, with reconciled net total.

Claims and awards in Tenancy Tribunal application 5285321 — net $369.81 NZD. Amounts reconciled from the published order (claims sum and net total). Verify on MoJ.
Claim	Landlord	Reason
Rent arrears to 31 October 2024	$785.70	Rent arrears to 31 October 2024
Water rates to end of tenancy	$64.11	Water rates to end of tenancy
Repairs to laundry floor	$800.00	Repairs to laundry floor
Lock/key replacement	$253.00	Lock/key replacement
Filing fee reimbursement	$27.00	rd has been substantially successful and so I have reimbursed the filing fee of $27.00.
Net award	$369.81
Total payable by Tenant to Landlord	$369.81

Claims and awards for application 5285321 — net $369.81 NZD. Verify on MoJ.

Rent arrears to 31 October 2024

Amount: $785.70
Awarded to: Landlord
Reason: Rent arrears to 31 October 2024

Water rates to end of tenancy

Amount: $64.11
Awarded to: Landlord
Reason: Water rates to end of tenancy

Repairs to laundry floor

Amount: $800.00
Awarded to: Landlord
Reason: Repairs to laundry floor

Lock/key replacement

Amount: $253.00
Awarded to: Landlord
Reason: Lock/key replacement

Filing fee reimbursement

Amount: $27.00
Awarded to: Landlord
Reason: rd has been substantially successful and so I have reimbursed the filing fee of $27.00.

Claim types — money lines allowed on this order

Filing Fee Property damage Rent arrears Water Rates

Order

An application for suppression has been made in this case, and the Tribunal orders suppression of the Landlord’s name and identifying details.
Ngaire Karati and Raemaki Karati must pay [The landlord/s] $369.81 immediately, calculated as shown in table below.
The Bond Centre is to pay the bond of $1,560.00 ([Bond number suppressed]) to [The landlord/s] immediately.

Reasons

Only the landlord attended the hearing.
This tenancy began on 24 August 2016 and ended on 31 October 2024.
The landlord has applied for rent and water arrears, compensation, refund of the bond, and reimbursement of the filing fee following the end of the tenancy.

How much is owed for rent and water rates?

The tenancy ended on 31 October 2024.
The landlord provided rent records proving that that amount of $785.70 is owing for rent at the end of the tenancy.
The landlord provided a water invoice proving that that the amount of $64.11 is owing for water rates to 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 landlord said that the tenants did not return the keys. As a result they had to have a locksmith change the locks.
The landlord provided evidence of the cost of changing the locks in the amount of $253.00. This claim is proved.

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. Hole in laundry floor
The landlord said that there was a large hole in the laundry floor at the end of the tenancy. The landlord produced a photo of the hole and referred me to an inspection report from 2022 (when the landlord took over management of the property) which shows the floor to be intact.
The landlord produced an invoice for repairing the hole, which appears to have been caused by water damage, in the amount of $1,257.99.
I am satisfied that the damage occurred during the tenancy and is more than fair wear and tear.
I do however need to consider depreciation and betterment when awarding compensation. The landlord should be returned to the position they would have been in had the tenant not breached their obligations and should not be better or worse off.
The landlord now has a new laundry floor covered with new vinyl. I consider that some deduction is required for betterment and so order compensation in the amount of $800.00. Kickboard and kitchen cupboard
The landlord also sought the sum of $108.10 for replacing a kickboard underneath the oven and the sum of $250.70 for a pantry door that had become unattached from its hinges.
The claim in respect of the kickboard is not proved, as the kickboard can be seen to be coming away in the 2022 inspection photos. I am not satisfied that the damage occurred during the tenancy.
I am satisfied that the pantry door had come away from its hinges during the tenancy but I consider this to be wear and tear. This was a tenancy of almost 10 years and it is to be expected that there will be some wear to hinges on cupboards that are frequently used.
The claims for the kickboard and kitchen cupboard are dismissed. Filing fee and name suppression
The landlord has been substantially successful and so I have reimbursed the filing fee of $27.00.
The landlord sought and order for name suppression and is entitled to an order as the substantially successful party 1 .

Claims & awards

What this tenancy cost at tribunal — claim, category, amount, and party awarded, with reconciled net total.

Claims and awards in Tenancy Tribunal application 5285321 — net $369.81 NZD. Amounts reconciled from the published order (claims sum and net total). Verify on MoJ.
Claim	Landlord	Reason
Rent arrears to 31 October 2024	$785.70	Rent arrears to 31 October 2024
Water rates to end of tenancy	$64.11	Water rates to end of tenancy
Repairs to laundry floor	$800.00	Repairs to laundry floor
Lock/key replacement	$253.00	Lock/key replacement
Filing fee reimbursement	$27.00	rd has been substantially successful and so I have reimbursed the filing fee of $27.00.
Net award	$369.81
Total payable by Tenant to Landlord	$369.81

Claims and awards for application 5285321 — net $369.81 NZD. Verify on MoJ.

Rent arrears to 31 October 2024

Amount: $785.70
Awarded to: Landlord
Reason: Rent arrears to 31 October 2024

Water rates to end of tenancy

Amount: $64.11
Awarded to: Landlord
Reason: Water rates to end of tenancy

Repairs to laundry floor

Amount: $800.00
Awarded to: Landlord
Reason: Repairs to laundry floor

Lock/key replacement

Amount: $253.00
Awarded to: Landlord
Reason: Lock/key replacement

Filing fee reimbursement

Amount: $27.00
Awarded to: Landlord
Reason: rd has been substantially successful and so I have reimbursed the filing fee of $27.00.

Claim types — money lines allowed on this order

Filing Fee Property damage Rent arrears Water Rates

Order

An application for suppression has been made in this case, and the Tribunal orders suppression of the Landlord’s name and identifying details.
Ngaire Karati and Raemaki Karati must pay [The landlord/s] $369.81 immediately, calculated as shown in table below.
The Bond Centre is to pay the bond of $1,560.00 ([Bond number suppressed]) to [The landlord/s] immediately.

Reasons

Only the landlord attended the hearing.
This tenancy began on 24 August 2016 and ended on 31 October 2024.
The landlord has applied for rent and water arrears, compensation, refund of the bond, and reimbursement of the filing fee following the end of the tenancy.

How much is owed for rent and water rates?

The tenancy ended on 31 October 2024.
The landlord provided rent records proving that that amount of $785.70 is owing for rent at the end of the tenancy.
The landlord provided a water invoice proving that that the amount of $64.11 is owing for water rates to 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 landlord said that the tenants did not return the keys. As a result they had to have a locksmith change the locks.
The landlord provided evidence of the cost of changing the locks in the amount of $253.00. This claim is proved.

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. Hole in laundry floor
The landlord said that there was a large hole in the laundry floor at the end of the tenancy. The landlord produced a photo of the hole and referred me to an inspection report from 2022 (when the landlord took over management of the property) which shows the floor to be intact.
The landlord produced an invoice for repairing the hole, which appears to have been caused by water damage, in the amount of $1,257.99.
I am satisfied that the damage occurred during the tenancy and is more than fair wear and tear.
I do however need to consider depreciation and betterment when awarding compensation. The landlord should be returned to the position they would have been in had the tenant not breached their obligations and should not be better or worse off.
The landlord now has a new laundry floor covered with new vinyl. I consider that some deduction is required for betterment and so order compensation in the amount of $800.00. Kickboard and kitchen cupboard
The landlord also sought the sum of $108.10 for replacing a kickboard underneath the oven and the sum of $250.70 for a pantry door that had become unattached from its hinges.
The claim in respect of the kickboard is not proved, as the kickboard can be seen to be coming away in the 2022 inspection photos. I am not satisfied that the damage occurred during the tenancy.
I am satisfied that the pantry door had come away from its hinges during the tenancy but I consider this to be wear and tear. This was a tenancy of almost 10 years and it is to be expected that there will be some wear to hinges on cupboards that are frequently used.
The claims for the kickboard and kitchen cupboard are dismissed. Filing fee and name suppression
The landlord has been substantially successful and so I have reimbursed the filing fee of $27.00.
The landlord sought and order for name suppression and is entitled to an order as the substantially successful party 1 .

Tenancy Tribunal case 5285321 — Property damage

At a glance

Tenancy Tribunal case 5285321 — Property damage

At a glance

Award balance

Claims & awards

Order

Reasons

How much is owed for rent and water rates?

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

How much is owed for rent and water rates?

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