What was Tenancy Tribunal case 5519131 about?

The tribunal order states: [The tenant/s] tenant/s] must pay Wolfbrook Property Management Limited As

How much money was awarded in case 5519131?

Cleaning: $250.00 awarded to landlord; Filing Fee: $28.00 awarded to landlord; Rent Arrears: $3,120.00 awarded to landlord; - Drainage: $2,240.00 awarded to landlord; - Painting: $850.00 awarded to landlord

What type of tenancy dispute was case 5519131?

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

Where can I read the official tribunal order for case 5519131?

The official Ministry of Justice published order is available at https://forms.justice.govt.nz/search/Documents/TTV2/PDF/14011964-Tenancy_Tribunal_Order.pdf.

What was Tenancy Tribunal case 5519131 about?

The tribunal order states: [The tenant/s] tenant/s] must pay Wolfbrook Property Management Limited As

How much money was awarded in case 5519131?

Cleaning: $250.00 awarded to landlord; Filing Fee: $28.00 awarded to landlord; Rent Arrears: $3,120.00 awarded to landlord; - Drainage: $2,240.00 awarded to landlord; - Painting: $850.00 awarded to landlord

What type of tenancy dispute was case 5519131?

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

Where can I read the official tribunal order for case 5519131?

The official Ministry of Justice published order is available at https://forms.justice.govt.nz/search/Documents/TTV2/PDF/14011964-Tenancy_Tribunal_Order.pdf.

Unit/Flat 7, 317 Lincoln Road, Addington, Christchurch 8024 Tenancy Tribunal Case 5519131 — Rent arrears

Tenantcheck Insights

Order

Claims and awards in Tenancy Tribunal application 5519131 — net $4,248.00 NZD. Amounts reconciled from the published order (claims sum and net total). Verify on MoJ.
Claim	Landlord	Reason
Rent arrears (to 14 June 2026	$3,120.00	Rent arrears (to 14 June 2026
Repairs: - Painting	$850.00	Repairs: - Painting
Repairs: - Drainage	$2,240.00	Repairs: - Drainage
Carpet Cleaning	$250.00	Carpet Cleaning
Filing fee reimbursement	$28.00	Filing fee reimbursement
Net award	$4,248.00
Total payable by Tenant to Landlord	$4,248.00

[The tenant/s] tenant/s] must pay Wolfbrook Property Management Limited As Agent For Arun Sharma & Aparajita Kumari $4,248.00 immediately, calculated as shown in table below. DescriptionLandlord Rent arrears (to 14 June 2026)$3,120.00 Repairs: - Painting$850.00 Repairs: - Drainage$2,240.00 Carpet Cleaning$250.00 Filing fee reimbursement$28.00 Total award$6,488.00 Bond$2,240.00 Total payable by Tenant to Landlord$4,248.00

The Bond Centre is to pay the bond of $2,240.00 (BN-00094860) to Wolfbrook Property Management Limited As Agent For Arun Sharma & Aparajita Kumari immediately.

A claim for cleaning costs was withdrawn.

The claim for power charges is dismissed.

Reasons

Both parties attended the hearing.

The landlord has applied for rent arrears, compensation, refund of the bond, and reimbursement of the filing fee following the end of the tenancy.

The tenant had applied for refund of the bond but, at the hearing, she accepted the claims for rent arrears and carpet cleaning. I have made orders accordingly.

The landlord withdrew a claim for cleaning costs at the hearing.

Is the tenant responsible for the damage to the premises?

The landlord claimed compensation for wall damage/painting repairs ($1,322.50) and drain repairs ($6,775.38).

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.

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) RTA.

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) RTA.

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 tenant accepted that some wall damage occurred during the tenancy, but disputed the amount and extent claimed. Having regard to the photographs, I accept that some of the damage claimed was reasonable wear and tear. However, I also accept the tenant’s repair attempts are likely to have increased the scope of work required by the landlord’s contractor. Weighing both issues, the photographs and the actual repair cost, I award $850.00 for wall damage.

The landlord also claimed $6,775.38 for drainage repairs, caused by a wet wipe blockage at the premises. The landlord provided photographs and evidence of cost incurred. The plumbers invoice included a full and detailed narration of investigations. The tenant said she had drainage issues throughout the tenancy, that drains were regularly cleared and the plumber’s said that it was a construction defect. In reply, the landlord said that the first blockage was reported in September 2025 (3 months after the tenancy started) and at regular intervals after that. The landlord reported that previous tenants had not had any issues with drainage, and that the wipes in the waste pipe must have been from this tenancy. I find that it is more likely than not that the wipes were disposed of during this tenancy and have caused damage. I find that the damage was careless, Ms Reed did not intend for damage to occur and had been advised during the tenancy that a construction issue was causing the blockages; she was not advised to stop disposing of wipes. However, she should have been aware not to flush the wipes; they are not bio-degradable and packaging warms against flushing. I award four times the weekly rent of $560.00 for the drainage damage.

The landlord also claimed $165.45 for connecting power to the premises. That claim is dismissed. There is no obligation on a tenant to maintain a power supply after they vacate the premises. The landlord maintains that it is a condition of their tenancy agreement. I consider that requirement places a greater obligation on the tenant than is required by the RTA and is not enforceable. Refer s11 RTA.

As the landlord was substantially successful, I also award reimbursement of the Tribunal application fee.

Order

Claims and awards in Tenancy Tribunal application 5519131 — net $4,248.00 NZD. Amounts reconciled from the published order (claims sum and net total). Verify on MoJ.
Claim	Landlord	Reason
Rent arrears (to 14 June 2026	$3,120.00	Rent arrears (to 14 June 2026
Repairs: - Painting	$850.00	Repairs: - Painting
Repairs: - Drainage	$2,240.00	Repairs: - Drainage
Carpet Cleaning	$250.00	Carpet Cleaning
Filing fee reimbursement	$28.00	Filing fee reimbursement
Net award	$4,248.00
Total payable by Tenant to Landlord	$4,248.00

The Bond Centre is to pay the bond of $2,240.00 (BN-00094860) to Wolfbrook Property Management Limited As Agent For Arun Sharma & Aparajita Kumari immediately.

A claim for cleaning costs was withdrawn.

The claim for power charges is dismissed.

Reasons

Both parties attended the hearing.

The landlord has applied for rent arrears, compensation, refund of the bond, and reimbursement of the filing fee following the end of the tenancy.

The tenant had applied for refund of the bond but, at the hearing, she accepted the claims for rent arrears and carpet cleaning. I have made orders accordingly.

The landlord withdrew a claim for cleaning costs at the hearing.

Is the tenant responsible for the damage to the premises?

The landlord claimed compensation for wall damage/painting repairs ($1,322.50) and drain repairs ($6,775.38).

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) RTA.

As the landlord was substantially successful, I also award reimbursement of the Tribunal application fee.

Tenancy Tribunal case 5519131 — Rent arrears at Unit/Flat 7, 317 Lincoln Road, Addington, Christchurch 8024

At a glance

Tenancy Tribunal case 5519131 — Rent arrears at Unit/Flat 7, 317 Lincoln Road, Addington, Christchurch 8024

At a glance

Award balance

Claims & awards

Order

Reasons

Is the tenant responsible for the damage to the premises?

Topics & place

Residential Tenancies Act sections

Key findings

Property management

Frequently asked questions

Reduce avoidable tribunal risk with proper tenant checks.

Award balance

Claims & awards

Order

Reasons

Is the tenant responsible for the damage to the premises?

Topics & place

Residential Tenancies Act sections

Key findings

Property management

Frequently asked questions

Reduce avoidable tribunal risk with proper tenant checks.