What was Tenancy Tribunal case 5296199 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 5296199?

Carpet Remove And Replace: $200.00 awarded to landlord; Cleaning: $287.50 awarded to landlord; Filing Fee: $27.00 awarded to landlord; Rent Arrears: $214.58 awarded to landlord; Rubbish Removal: $373.75 awarded to landlord

What type of tenancy dispute was case 5296199?

The primary dispute was Cleanliness. Related themes: Rent arrears.

Where can I read the official tribunal order for case 5296199?

The official Ministry of Justice published order is available at https://forms.justice.govt.nz/search/Documents/TTV2/PDF/12470642-Tribunal_Order_Redacted.pdf.

What was Tenancy Tribunal case 5296199 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 5296199?

Carpet Remove And Replace: $200.00 awarded to landlord; Cleaning: $287.50 awarded to landlord; Filing Fee: $27.00 awarded to landlord; Rent Arrears: $214.58 awarded to landlord; Rubbish Removal: $373.75 awarded to landlord

What type of tenancy dispute was case 5296199?

The primary dispute was Cleanliness. Related themes: Rent arrears.

Where can I read the official tribunal order for case 5296199?

The official Ministry of Justice published order is available at https://forms.justice.govt.nz/search/Documents/TTV2/PDF/12470642-Tribunal_Order_Redacted.pdf.

New Zealand Tenancy Tribunal Case 5296199 — Cleanliness

Tenantcheck Insights

Reasons

Claims and awards in Tenancy Tribunal application 5296199 — net $1,102.83 NZD. Amounts reconciled from the published order (claims sum and net total). Verify on MoJ.
Claim	Landlord	Reason
Rent arrears (to 9 April 2025	$214.58	Rent arrears (to 9 April 2025
Cleaning	$287.50	Cleaning
Rubbish removal	$373.75	Rubbish removal
Carpet remove and replace	$200.00	Carpet remove and replace
Filing fee reimbursement	$27.00	Filing fee reimbursement
Net award	$1,102.83
Total payable by Tenant to Landlord	$1,102.83

On 27 June 2025 the landlord filed an application with the Tribunal seeking rent arrears, compensation, refund of the bond, and reimbursement of the filing fee following the end of the tenancy.

[Tenancy Manager], Tenancy Manager, and [Maintenance and Asset Co- ordinator], Maintenance and Asset Co-ordinator, appeared at the hearing for the landlord. The tenant did not appear. The Tribunal was satisfied the tenant was properly served with the notice of hearing and the case proceeded in his absence. Relevant Legal Considerations

The relevant law that applies is found in the Residential Tenancies Act 1986 (the “Act”).

With any claim before the Tenancy Tribunal, the Tribunal applies the usual civil law standards and expectations.

That includes a requirement that the party bringing the claim (the applicant), establish their claims “on the balance of probabilities.” The balance of probabilities means more likely than unlikely, or in mathematical terms, has a fractionally more than 50% likelihood. The Tribunal does not need to be certain or very sure about any claim, only that what is claimed is likely.

This obligation carried by the applicant is referred to as the “burden of proof.” Independent witnesses, corroborating documents and photographs are an important part of discharging this burden.

As noted by the District Court in Kaipo v Clarke & McCarthy (DC) TT233/02, in practical terms this means that: ... [L]ike anyone who brings an application before a Tribunal or Court, it is incumbent upon the applicant to provide the evidence necessary to prove the case. If the applicant fails to do that, then their application will be dismissed whether it has merit or not because it is up to the applicant to provide the necessary evidence. It is not up to the other parties, and it is certainly not up to the Tribunal to extract evidence. Background to the tenancy

Between 2021 and August 2022 the tenant lived at the property with his mother and younger sister under his mother’s tenancy agreement (the tenant was not a party to this contract).

Following the death of the tenant’s mother, the parties agreed the tenant could remain in the property and a new tenancy agreement was signed on 1 September 2022.

The tenancy ended on 9 April 2025 after the tenant gave notice.

How much is owed for rent?

The landlord provided up-to-date rent records which prove the amount owing at the end of the tenancy totalled $214.58. The amount claimed is ordered.

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 and remove all rubbish, see section 40(1)(e)(iii) of the Act.

The landlord claims the tenant did not leave the property reasonably clean and tidy and did not remove all rubbish. The landlord provided the Tribunal with an invoice for the costs of cleaning and rubbish removal after paying a contractor to undertake the work. The cleaning costs totalled $287.50, and the rubbish removal costs totalled $373.75.

The landlord provided end of tenancy photographs which showed the condition of the property at the end of the tenancy. The photographs show that the cupboards and draws in the kitchen had not been cleaned and wiped out, the toilet and bathroom had not been cleaned and rubbish had been left behind. Having heard from the landlord and considered all of the evidence, the Tribunal is satisfied that the property was not left reasonably clean and tidy at the end of the tenancy and that rubbish had not been removed.

The amounts ordered are 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 of the Act.

Where the damage is careless, and occurs after 27 August 2019, section 49B of the Act applies. If the landlord becomes aware of the damage after 27 August, the damage is presumed to have occurred after that date unless the tenant proves otherwise.

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) of the Act.

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) of the Act. 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) of the Act.

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) of the Act.

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 claims the following damage was caused during the tenancy: a. Multiple pin/picture holes and dents to the walls throughout the property b. Significant staining and multiple cigarette burns to the carpet throughout the property; and c. Holes in the vinyl flooring in the kitchen. Wall and ceiling remediation and painting costs

The landlord seeks $4,743.75, for repairs and painting costs to fix the pin/picture hole damage and dents to the walls and ceiling of the property. The landlord said the total cost of the repairs and painting was $9,487.50 but only seeks to recover half the cost from the tenant as the work also included general maintenance costs. The landlord provided an invoice for the amount claimed.

There are no pre-tenancy inspection photographs available to the Tribunal showing the condition of the property at the commencement of the tenancy. The landlord instead relied on photographs taken on 28 July 2022 (the “July 2022 photographs”), taken during a routine property inspection of the tenant’s mother’s tenancy, as evidence of the condition of the property at the commencement of the tenancy. These photographs were taken five weeks before the tenant signed the tenancy agreement for the property.

The photographs taken during the routine inspection show numerous pictures, wall hangings, mirrors, and dream catchers attached to the walls and suspended from the ceilings of the property.

The end of tenancy photographs provided by the landlord show pin/picture holes in the walls consistent with the locations of where the tenant’s mother had attached items to the walls and ceiling.

Having heard from the landlord and after considering the evidence, the Tribunal cannot be satisfied that the damage to the walls and ceiling was caused by the tenant during his tenancy and the claim is dismissed. Carpet costs

The landlord claims the tenant damaged the carpet during the tenancy and seeks $343.28, the cost of uplifting and disposing of the damaged carpet, and $4,025.00 the cost of replacing and relaying carpet, and provided an invoice for the amounts claimed.

The July 2022 photographs provided by the landlord show the carpet covered by large items of furniture and multiple rugs. With the exception of the hallway, there is limited opportunity to observe the condition of the carpet.

The end of tenancy photographs show the carpet has been extensively stained and there are multiple cigarette burn marks.

Having heard from the landlord and considering all of the evidence, the Tribunal cannot be satisfied that the majority of the stains and cigarette burn marks were caused by the tenant during his tenancy. The Tribunal finds that a makeup stain in bedroom three and the stain in the hallway, which were not present in the July 2022 photographs, were caused by the tenant during their tenancy and the damage is more than fair wear and tear. The Tribunal awards compensation of $200.00. Replacement of vinyl costs

The landlord claims the tenant damaged the vinyl during the tenancy and seeks $1,840.00, which was the cost of replacing and relaying vinyl in the kitchen.

The landlord drew the Tribunal’s attention to the end of tenancy photographs which showed two holes in the vinyl, underneath where the fridge had been located, and a hole in the vinyl near the entrance to the lounge.

The 2022 photographs do not provide evidence of the condition of the vinyl in the areas the tenant is alleged to have damaged. In the 2022 photographs the fridge is covering one of the areas allegedly damaged and the other area is not clearly shown. On that basis the Tribunal cannot be satisfied that the damage was caused by the tenant during his tenancy and the claim is dismissed. Costs

Because [The applicant/s] has substantially succeeded with the claim I have reimbursed the filing fee. Name Suppression

Section 95A of the Act provides that on the application of a party that has been wholly or substantially successful in proceedings, the Tribunal must order that the name or identifying particulars not be published, unless the Tribunal considers that it is in the public interest to publish the names of the parties, or is justified because of the parties’ conduct, or any other circumstances of the case.

The landlord has been substantially successful and is granted name suppression.

Despite not being present at the hearing the tenant has also been substantially successful and is also granted name suppression.

Reasons

Claims and awards in Tenancy Tribunal application 5296199 — net $1,102.83 NZD. Amounts reconciled from the published order (claims sum and net total). Verify on MoJ.
Claim	Landlord	Reason
Rent arrears (to 9 April 2025	$214.58	Rent arrears (to 9 April 2025
Cleaning	$287.50	Cleaning
Rubbish removal	$373.75	Rubbish removal
Carpet remove and replace	$200.00	Carpet remove and replace
Filing fee reimbursement	$27.00	Filing fee reimbursement
Net award	$1,102.83
Total payable by Tenant to Landlord	$1,102.83

On 27 June 2025 the landlord filed an application with the Tribunal seeking rent arrears, compensation, refund of the bond, and reimbursement of the filing fee following the end of the tenancy.

The relevant law that applies is found in the Residential Tenancies Act 1986 (the “Act”).

With any claim before the Tenancy Tribunal, the Tribunal applies the usual civil law standards and expectations.

This obligation carried by the applicant is referred to as the “burden of proof.” Independent witnesses, corroborating documents and photographs are an important part of discharging this burden.

Between 2021 and August 2022 the tenant lived at the property with his mother and younger sister under his mother’s tenancy agreement (the tenant was not a party to this contract).

Following the death of the tenant’s mother, the parties agreed the tenant could remain in the property and a new tenancy agreement was signed on 1 September 2022.

The tenancy ended on 9 April 2025 after the tenant gave notice.

How much is owed for rent?

The landlord provided up-to-date rent records which prove the amount owing at the end of the tenancy totalled $214.58. The amount claimed is ordered.

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 and remove all rubbish, see section 40(1)(e)(iii) of the Act.

The amounts ordered are proved.

Is the tenant responsible for the damage to the premises?

The photographs taken during the routine inspection show numerous pictures, wall hangings, mirrors, and dream catchers attached to the walls and suspended from the ceilings of the property.

The end of tenancy photographs provided by the landlord show pin/picture holes in the walls consistent with the locations of where the tenant’s mother had attached items to the walls and ceiling.

The end of tenancy photographs show the carpet has been extensively stained and there are multiple cigarette burn marks.

The landlord claims the tenant damaged the vinyl during the tenancy and seeks $1,840.00, which was the cost of replacing and relaying vinyl in the kitchen.

Because [The applicant/s] has substantially succeeded with the claim I have reimbursed the filing fee. Name Suppression

The landlord has been substantially successful and is granted name suppression.

Despite not being present at the hearing the tenant has also been substantially successful and is also granted name suppression.

Tenancy Tribunal case 5296199 — Cleanliness

At a glance

Tenancy Tribunal case 5296199 — Cleanliness

At a glance

Award balance

Claims & awards

Dismissed claims

Order

Reasons

How much is owed for rent?

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

Dismissed claims

Order

Reasons

How much is owed for rent?

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