A property management company has been ordered to pay exemplary damages of over $11,000 after "multiple breaches" of the Residential Tenancies Act.
A case into Hambletonian Limited was opened by the Tenancy Compliance and Investigations Team (TCIT) in March 2021, in response to an allegation received from a tenant in north Waikato.
The investigation found that it had failed to lodge bonds for multiple tenants, arguing that the people living at the property were flatmates, and not boarding house tenants.
The case was heard by the Tenancy Tribunal, which found the people living at the property were in fact boarding house tenants.
As well as failing to lodge tenant bonds, the Tenancy Tribunal found that the landlord breached obligations relating to smoke alarms, healthy homes standards, and tenancy agreements.
TCIT national manager Brett Wilson said landlords should be aware of their obligations under the Residential Tenancies Act and "work to ensure they are meeting them".
"The Tribunal noted that parties cannot contract out of the Residential Tenancies Act. This means that a landlord cannot avoid his or her obligations by labelling the relationship as something other than a residential tenancy," said Wilson.
He said smoke alarms needed to be installed within at least three metres of each bedroom door, or in every room where a person sleeps.
The Tribunal found there was a lack of smoke alarms and the distance to the nearest smoke alarm was over four metres away, while there was also no underfloor insulation.
"The Tribunal noted that if there had been a fire then the consequences may have been catastrophic as the property is an old wooden structure, far away from urban fire stations, and it is likely any fire would have taken hold quickly and would not have been put out by the residents," Wilson said.
As part of the total $11,325 fine handed out, $1600 in exemplary damages was awarded after the landlord failed to lodge tenant bonds, instead charging tenants a 'land access' fee which was not always returned at the end of the tenancy.
The Tribunal said it was important for bonds to be lodged, so if there is a dispute about the bond at the end of the tenancy, tenants have the option to go to the Tenancy Tribunal.
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