Tenantcheck Insights · Case study
Tenancy Tribunal case 5320639 — Tenancy dispute
Decided 7 Jan 2026 · Published 7 Jan 2026 · Application 5320639
- Rent arrears
Party names are redacted in the official published order. This page summarises the dispute only — not individual identities.
At a glance
Key facts from the published tribunal order.
Adjudicator
N Bradley
Claims & awards
What this tenancy cost at tribunal — claim, category, amount, and party awarded, with reconciled net total.
No individual claim amounts were reconciled for this order. View the official Ministry of Justice PDF for full detail.
Order
- The Tribunal orders suppression of the parties names and identifying details.
- The application is dismissed.
Reasons
- The applicant, [The applicant] (Ms S) and the current property manager (as agent for the landlord) attended the remote hearing.
- The current tenant, [The remaining tenant] (Mr S) did not attend the hearing but was served with notice of the hearing by email. The hearing proceeded in his absence.
- Ms S withdrew from the tenancy pursuant to section 56B of the Residential Tenancies Act 1986 (RTA). Ms S has applied for refund of part of the bond. The Law
- Section 56B of the RTA relates to withdrawals from tenancies following family violence. Section 56B (1) of the RTA says a tenant under a fixed-term or periodic tenancy may withdraw from the tenancy by giving at least 2 days’ notice to the landlord if they give notice in the approved form with qualifying evidence.
- Section 56B (2) of the RTA says if there are no other tenants under the tenancy at the time of the withdrawal, the tenancy terminates.
- Section 56B (3) of the RTA says if there are other tenants (remaining tenants) under the tenancy at the time of the withdrawal, the tenant withdrawing from the tenancy (the withdrawing tenant) ceases to be responsible to the landlord for obligations under the tenancy agreement and the RTA, except in respect of any liability for anything done or omitted to be done before the withdrawal; and the tenancy continues in relation to the remaining tenants only.
- The bond is money paid as security for the observance and performance of the tenant’s obligations under the tenancy agreement and the RTA. 1 The bond is held by the Tenancy Services bond centre, provided it has been lodged with the bond centre. This case
- On 10 April 2025 Ms S says that she had a discussion about withdrawing from the tenancy pursuant to section 56B of the RTA with the property manager at the time and that she told the property manager that she was not prepared to forfeit her share of the bond. The tenant says she took from the conversation with the property manager that she would receive her share of the bond, following the tenancy ending for her, although that might take some time.
- On 11 April 2025 Ms S served the landlord with the notice of withdrawal from the tenancy.
- On 13 April 2025 Ms S says she vacated the tenancy and her tenancy ended.
- In May and June 2025 Ms S says she contacted the property manager about obtaining a refund of the bond.
- On 11 June 2025 the property manager emailed both of the tenants to have a “change of tenant” form signed by them both. Ms S signed the “change of tenant” form. I note here that it says in the email that on signing the “change of tenant” form Ms S is removed as a tenant in relation to the bond. The “change of tenant form” generally says that the departing tenant will have no further claim to the bond, although in this case the fully executed form was not submitted in evidence by either party in this matter. The email from the property manager does not state that part of the bond will be refunded to Ms S to execution of the forms.
- The property manager involved in the conversations with the tenant at the time of the withdrawal did not attend the hearing. 1 See section 2 RTA.
- It was clear from the tenant’s evidence and the current property manager’s evidence that the property manager at the time was uncertain about how to manage a withdrawal under the family violence provisions of the RTA and there may have been some initial misunderstandings.
- It is unclear to me why the property manager sent the “change of tenant” form to Ms S to sign when she was aware that Ms S was seeking a refund of part of her bond and by signing the “change of tenant” form Ms S would be giving up that claim. However, I consider Ms S should not have signed the “change of tenant” form if she was seeking a refund of part of the bond when the form was emailed to her and declined to do so. I have confirmed with the Bond Centre that the “change of tenant” form was lodged, and the bond is now only held in the name of Mr S.
- The Tenancy Services website provides helpful advice on how to manage the bond in the event of a withdrawal by a tenant under s 56B of the RTA: The bond refund process will not be any different for tenants and landlords in this situation. •If there are multiple tenants on the bond record then the withdrawing tenant will need to seek agreement from the landlord and other named tenants to have the bond (or part) refunded to them. The landlord and remaining tenants can agree on a plan to top up the bond to the amount required under the tenancy agreement. The agreed amount must be lodged using our bond lodgement webform - ‘top up an existing bond’. •It is in the interests of the remaining tenants to sort out the bond at this point to avoid any delays with refunding at the end of the tenancy. •If the withdrawing tenant does not want to request a refund for the bond (or part of), they can complete a change of tenant form (departing tenant) to have their name removed from the bond record. The withdrawing tenant doesn’t have to make this decision at the point of withdraw. 2
- Mr S’s obligations in respect of the tenancy have not ended and the bond continues to be held as security in relation to the ongoing tenancy. 3 I do not consider there is any obligation on the landlord to agree to the bond centre releasing part of the bond when there is a withdrawal under the family violence provisions of the RTA and withdrawing tenants should try and make arrangements with remaining tenants for a refund of their share of the bond or if this cannot be achieved then ensure the bond remains held for them with the bond centre until the end of the tenancy. 2 Withdrawal from a tenancy following family violence » Tenancy Services 3 See tenants responsibilities - s 40 (1) of the RTA.
- Because the tenancy is ongoing and the bond is now only held in Mr S’s sole name the bond is to remain held with the bond centre until the tenancy ends and at that time either party can then seek the bond in accordance with the provisions of the RTA. I do not consider that there is any basis for me to refund Ms S part of the bond. I also note that if I am wrong in that finding, I have no documentary evidence as to how much of the bond she actually paid. For these reasons the application is dismissed.
- Any dispute between the tenants is outside the jurisdiction of the Tribunal. Filing fee and Suppression
- As the tenant has been unsuccessful in the claim I have not reimbursed the filing fee.
- The Tribunal must, in any proceedings that relate to a withdrawal from a tenancy under section 56B RTA, order that the names and any identifying particulars of the parties not be published. 4 Accordingly, the parties' names and identifying details are suppressed.