Tenantcheck Insights · Case study
Tenancy Tribunal case 5451910 — Tenancy dispute
Decided 8 Apr 2026 · Published 8 Apr 2026 · Application 5451910
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
S Steele
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
- An application for suppression has been made in this case, and the Tribunal orders suppression of the parties’ names and identifying details.
- The fixed-term tenancy of [The tenant/s] at [Tenancy address suppressed] is terminated immediately and is replaced with a periodic tenancy on the same terms (as far as those terms are consistent with a periodic tenancy) with the consent of the parties.
- The tenant’s claim for bond refund, compensation and rent abatement is dismissed.
Reasons
- Both parties attended the hearing. Ms [P] attended for the landlord.
- The tenant has applied for reduction of the fixed-term tenancy due to end on 31 January 2027, compensation, refund of bond and reimbursement of the filing fee. Bond refund
- The tenancy has not ended so no order can be made in relation to the bond. The bond will be resolved in the usual way when the tenancy eventually ends. Reduction of fixed term
- During the hearing it became clear that the parties may have been able to mediate an outcome as regards the end of the fixed term tenancy.
- The Adjudicator left the room to enable the parties to mediate in private.
- The parties agreed that the fixed term tenancy would end immediately and be replaced by a periodic tenancy on the same terms and conditions so long as these are consistent with a periodic tenancy.
- For the avoidance of doubt, in particular, the parties acknowledge that the tenancy can now be ended by the tenants with 21 days’ notice being given to the landlord in compliance with the requirements of section 51(2A) of the Residential Tenancies Act 1986 (the Act).
- No costs are sought by the landlord in relation to this change to the agreement between the parties and none are ordered. Compensation
- The applicant is required to establish the claim to the civil law standard of proof, on the balance of probabilities.
- The applicant claimed that they had incurred or would incur costs due to landlord breaches of the Act. The cost included existing medical expenses ($485.00) and future estimated moving costs (estimated at $713.00).
- The tenant also claimed rent rebatement in the amount of 40% for the duration of the tenancy as they had been unable to sleep so were not receiving the full benefit of the tenancy property ($2,674.26 to the hearing date).
- A third-party behaviour was causing distress to the tenants, and they were unwilling to continue the tenancy due to a situation outside of the landlord’s control.
- The tenant was unable to point to a specific landlord breach that would lead to rent abatement or compensation payments.
- The landlord agreed to move to a periodic tenancy to enable the tenant to lawfully end their tenancy with 21 days’ notice when they are able to find a new property to rent. The landlord voluntarily made this concession and asked for no compensation from the tenants in return.
- The landlord acknowledged the tenants’ distress but did not accept responsibility for the compensation or rent abatement claimed.
- In these circumstances, the tenant has not proven that there is any breach of the Act by the landlord, therefore no compensation or rent abatement can be ordered. Name suppression and filing fees
- The applicant requested suppression in the application and given that the essential claim was agreed through mediation, suppression of both parties’ details is ordered as above.
- The tenant has not been substantially successful so filing fee reimbursement cannot be ordered.