A Christchurch landlord who rented out a property where daylight was visible through gaps in the walls and ceiling has been ordered to pay more than $13,000.
An investigation into the Bishopdale property, managed by Trott Dairy Limited, was launched in July 2023 after the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment’s (MBIE) Tenancy Compliance and Investigations Team (TCIT) received a referral from the Christchurch City Council.
Upon visiting the property, investigators found “various issues”, including a detached garage that had been unlawfully converted into a residential unit.
Other issues included exposed batts, insufficient smoke alarms, a leaking roof, and external guttering that ran through and overflowed into the dining room.
Daylight was visible through gaps in the walls and ceiling.
Investigators also found the yard had “extensive” earthworks underway, with rubbish “that appeared to be industrial in nature”.
Three tenants lived at the property at the time of the MBIE investigation.
TCIT national manager Brett Wilson said the tenants at the property were “particularly vulnerable” because they were on temporary entry visas and reliant on the landlord.
“The landlord promised them a tenancy in a property they had been working on. This promise was never fulfilled and instead the landlord provided them with a property that was not fit for residential purposes.”
Wilson said the ministry took the landlord to the tribunal because “the breaches were so severe that it was in the public interest to proceed, despite the tenants choosing not to participate in the application or hearing”.
“The tenants suffered a number of illnesses that they attributed to the condition of the property, which the landlord accepted was not a lawful residential premise, but they were worried they would lose their tenancy if they complained,” Wilson said.
At a Tenancy Tribunal hearing on January 30 this year, both parties reached an agreement about the landlord’s liability for the admitted breaches. These included non-compliant tenancy agreements and failure to lodge bond received from tenants.
The landlord also accepted the garage was unlawful and consented to a partial rent refund.
Trott Dairy Limited was ordered to pay MBIE $3400 in exemplary damages after admitting multiple breaches of the Residential Tenancies Act and $10,000 in rent refunds. It was also issued with a three-year restraining order from committing the same unlawful acts.
Wilson said Trott Dairy Limited owned and managed approximately 40 properties in Christchurch, meaning it should be “acutely aware of its responsibilities”.
