Disputes Tribunal of New Zealand

Contract / Quasi contract / Property / Applicant and Respondent were flatmates / Applicant moved out of flat / Applicant refused to pay rent further than five weeks until Respondent found a new flatmate / Respondent reduced Applicant's bond / Applicant claimed rent and debt collector costs / Held: agreed in the flat that a flatmate remained liable to pay rent until a new flatmate was found / Therefore, Applicant obliged to pay all the rent until a new flatmate was found / Applicant's flatmates not liable to pay debt collection costs / Claim dismissed.

Contract / Respondent, Applicant, and his partner were flatmates / Respondent was the head tenant and others entered into a flat sharing agreement with her / Applicant and his partner moved out after four weeks / Respondent returned five days rent, and after four weeks refunded most of Applicant’s bond, retaining $120.00 for cleaning and $38.00 for utilities / Applicant claimed $1,999.00 for balance of his bond, hardship, racism and harassment / Held: Tribunal cannot hear claims about racism or harassment / Under the contract Applicant and his partner were not obliged to pay anything further towards utilities / Insufficient evidence to establish who was responsible for specified spills and stains, as they were in common areas / Not proven that Applicant and his partner failed to leave the property reasonably clean / Respondent not entitled to retain $120.00 cleaning fee / Not appropriate to award damages for the failure to return the bond immediately / Respondent ordered to pay $158.00…

Contract / Applicant and Respondent were flatmates / Respondent was the head tenant / Dispute arose over the bond paid by the Applicant / Applicant claims $540 being 3 weeks rent. One week bond was paid to the former flat mate she replaced, and she was liable for the 2 week delay in finding a replacement flat mate / Held: text message evidence proves there was some confusion around the payment to the previous flat mate but ultimately it was done on instruction from the Applicant / Dispute over the bond caused the delay in finding a replacement flat mate / Delay was not due to the respondent / Claim dismissed.

Contract / Parties were flatmates / Respondent as head tenant asked Applicant to leave the flat and have room professionally cleaned due to drug use / Applicant vacated property but failed to have room cleaned / Applicant claimed for return of $721 bond / Respondent counterclaimed for costs of having Applicant’s room cleaned and for security cameras purchased in response to threats allegedly made by Applicant / Held: implied agreement between parties that if Applicant used drugs inside the property, they were required to pay for professional cleaning to remove drug residue / Applicant not liable for cost of security cameras / Applicant required to pay $531.30 for cleaning, entitled to remaining $189.70 of bond / Respondent ordered to pay Applicant $189.70 / Claim and counterclaim partially allowed.

Contract / Tenancy / Contract and Commercial Law Act 2017 / Applicant and Respondent lived together as flatmates and co-tenants / Respondent moved out before lease ended and stopped paying rent / Applicant claimed $15,000 for unpaid rent, expenses, damages for stress / Held: Respondent breached contract / Respondent obligated to pay until end of lease or until lease varied / Applicant made effort to minimise loss by finding new flatmate / Respondent ordered to pay Applicant $3,256.49 / Respondent's counter-claim dismissed / Claim allowed in part.

Contract / Contract and Commercial Law Act 2017 / Applicant moved into a flat in November 2020 / Applicant paid $760 bond to head tenant Respondent / Applicant understood flatmates were planning to remain in the property for a while / In early January 2021, Applicant was informed the landlord had given the tenants one month to vacate property due to missed rent payments / Applicant moved out and requested her bond returned, Respondent refused / Applicant claimed $7,720.00 for bond, moving costs, mental health strain, loss of personal property, and other costs / Held: Applicant entitled to full bond / Applicant would have incurred expenses of moving into one flat, but not the additional expenses of moving again so soon / Applicant entitled to cost of moving and into another flat, but not the costs of subsequent move / Tribunal cannot consider the claim for mental health strain / Respondent ordered to pay Applicant $3,110.00, bond and moving costs / Claim granted in part.  

Contract / Applicant and Respondent were flatmates / They signed an agreement under which the Applicant was the head tenant / Weekly rent was $200.00 and bond was $4000.00 / Under the agreement, Respondent obliged to give 14 days’ notice if he wished to vacate the property / Applicant claimed the Respondent left without giving the required period of notice, and claimed for unpaid rent / Respondent stated that he informed the Applicant that intended to leave the flat, which he did on that day / Respondent outlined reasons he left the property including lack of cleanliness, noise concerns and flatmates having covid / Applicant said that Respondent had never complained about these issues / Applicant claimed $685.71 for unpaid rent / Held: Respondent lived at the property for six months without complaining about its condition / Flatmates who share a property may have different standards as far as cleanliness and noise are concerned, and some reasonable negotiation would be expected before …