A woman and her three children lived in tents on the section of their rental property after the house suffered extensive fire damage. Stock / 123rf
A woman and her three children lived in tents on the section of their rental property after the house suffered extensive fire damage. Stock / 123rf
With her home burnt and uninhabitable, a Tauranga mum with three kids in tow lived for a month in tents on the section of her rented property - while continuing to pay full rent.
Now the landlord, a Tauranga property management company, has been ordered to pay more than $18,000 after the woman spent seven months without the full use of the property.
According to the Tenancy Tribunal decision released this week, Tauranga woman Shelley Harris first rented the Brookfield property from Tauranga Rentals Limited in December 2018 alongside her three sons.
Two years later on Christmas Day 2020, Harris inadvertently left a gift on the kitchen stovetop. A knob was accidentally turned and the kitchen caught fire.
The fire caused severe damage to the kitchen and further damage throughout the home. It was accepted by both parties the blaze was the result of a genuine accident - one Harris apologised "profusely" for, according to the judgment.
The landlord's insurance covered the cost of repairs. It was not known if the insurance policy would have also covered temporary accommodation for Harris.
The damage to the home deemed it "essentially uninhabitable", at least until work to repair it was undertaken.
Harris said she had nowhere else to go, choosing to camp at the property in tents for a month alongside her three children, waiting for the property to be fixed. She asked for a rent reduction while she didn't have full access to the property, which the landlord declined, the finding said.
In February, Harris moved into the lower floor of the property, living with two children in a single bedroom. The eldest son lived in the garage. That arrangement lasted until August, and Harris continued paying full rent.
In April the property manager offered her hotel accommodation. She declined it, saying she'd already had four months of "living hell" and knew the renovations were to be completed soon, was paying storage of $100 per week for her possessions and did not want to uproot her family.
She had no relatives in the area she could stay with, or alternative accommodation options.
In fact, it was not until August the home was fixed, down to delays in finding tradies and supplies. By the time she finally moved upstairs after the home had been repaired, a notice terminating the tenancy was issued, described by the tribunal as a "cynical at best".
The tribunal found Harris took all reasonable steps to mitigate her loss.
It also found Harris' property manager engaged in "bullying behaviour", by "ordering" Harris to undertake work on the property that was the obligation of the landlord.
This included pulling up a hefty driveway drain to clean built-up gunk and cleaning the outside of the top floor windows.
The property manager who dealt with the tenancy, Wendy Flyger, no longer works for the company and did not attend the hearing but provided a written statement that was not included in the judgment.
Dan Lusby, the owner of Tauranga Rentals Limited. Photo / NZME
The landlord, represented at the tribunal by company co-owner Dan Lusby, said they did everything they could to assist Harris after the fire.
He claimed an offer was made to accommodate Harris in another property in January 2021.
However, Lusby couldn't provide any evidence of that offer. Harris told the tribunal an offer was never made.
"Given the gravity of the issue, one would have expected any such offer to be put in writing," tribunal adjudicator A Lee said.
The judgment said there was no legal obligation for the tenant to leave the property.
In total, the company was ordered to pay $18,170.44 to Harris - equivalent to an entire refund of the rent charged while the house was out of action.
"I am satisfied that a significant intrusion into Ms Harris's ability to live in the premises has occurred and the landlord has failed to take all appropriate steps to address this situation," adjudicator Lee said.
An additional claim put forward by Harris that the shower had holes in it was dismissed due to insufficient evidence.
