Published tribunal order
Tenancy Tribunal case 5344202 — Rent arrears
Decided 9 Jun 2026 · Published 9 Jun 2026 · Application 5344202
- Rent arrears
Party names are redacted in the official published order.
Order
- An application for suppression has been made in this case, and the Tribunal orders suppression of the party’s name and identifying details.
- [The tenant/s] the sum of $72.00 by 5pm Friday 8 th May 2026.
Reasons
- Both parties attended the hearing by teleconference,
- The landlord applied for rent arrears following the end of the tenancy.
- This tenancy commenced on 18 January 2022 and came to an end on 1 August 2024.
- The bond was refunded and there were no issues.
- The landlord discovered an incorrect rent calculation that saw the tenants owing a further $1150.00. This was communicated to [The tenant/s] on 8 May 2025, 9 months following the end of the tenancy.
- After some communications between the parties [The tenant/s] realised his incorrect calculation and made a payment of $1078 on the 3 rd May 2026, again the incorrect amount, a further error he takes full responsibility for.
- He advised that he made a transfer for the balance of the amount owing at the commencement of the hearing having been advised that he had made the incorrect payment.
- The tenant seeks name suppression, on the basis that when he was sent the rent statements, he realised his error and sorted payment. He claims that name suppression under these circumstances is appropriate. He accepts his communication was ‘’something he was not proud of” at times but was upset that his estranged father was contacted, and he thought the tenancy was concluded and given the bond had been returned to him he had no reason to suspect he owed any money.
- The landlord claimed that the tenant had an obligation, as the head tenant, to pay the rent that the other tenants paid him to the landlord, that the correspondence sent to him was inappropriate and that it took a year to receive the payment. The landlord opposed the application for name suppression.
- Name suppression in the Tenancy Tribunal is appropriate only in limited circumstance. Suppression maybe granted if publication would cause extreme hardship to a party, be contrary to the interests of Justice and contrary to the public interest.
- Having considered the submissions made by both parties I believe that the consequences of publication far outweigh the nature of the breach of the Residential Tenancies Act in this case.
- For both parties the tenancy ended in August 2024 and there were no outstanding issues. The bond was refunded in full. The tenant being advised some months later that he owed rent, in my view had reason to have the time to consider the evidence that showed the debt was outstanding. Having realised his error, he made payment.
- I do not find that it is in the interest of Justice nor in the public interest to have the details of the tenancy published, therefore I make an order for suppression of both of the parties names and address.