Tenant awarded $8k after mouldy house put baby in ICU

A landlord has been ordered to pay nearly $8000 in compensation after ignoring a mouldy property that worsened a family’s health conditions.

The tenant, who was granted name suppression, filed a Tenancy Tribunal complaint against their landlord, New Age Rentals Limited Harcourts Papatoetoe, for breaching Healthy Homes Standards. Between May and August 2021, the mother – who was in remission for bowel cancer and had asthma and a ‘‘vulnerable immune system’’ – was in and out of hospital.

Her youngest child, a baby, was diagnosed with croup and bronchiolitis, and had to be admitted to a hospital intensive care unit.

Medical certificates confirmed the ‘‘cold and damp house conditions’’ exacerbated the family’s conditions.

According to the decision, the tenant informed the landlord of leaks in the lounge ceiling in May 2021. The leaks had damaged the windows of three bedrooms, rendering them unable to close.

That meant three bedrooms were not usable due to water damage, and the tenant and her six children opted to stay in one bedroom for 13 months.

The mould caused her property to smell bad when it rained and also caused damage to her personal belongings such as items of clothing, a television and furniture..

The landlord said they attempted to get the window latches fixed in July 2021, but that was delayed due to Covid-19.

The tenant also said the bathroom door hinges were ‘‘rotting’’, making locking the doors impossible when in use. Issues with the door were flagged with the landlord in April, but were not fixed until July.

Tenancy adjudicator Aneterea Andrew Aiolupotea said the damaged windows had caused the house to be uninhabitable ‘‘due to safety and health hazards’’.

He said the landlord not repairing the leaks in a reasonable timeframe would have been ‘‘detrimental’’ to the health of the ‘‘medically vulnerable mother’’ and her six children. Aiolupotea also admonished the landlord for waiting three months to get the bathroom door fixed.

He ordered the landlord to pay $7827 compensation for the loss of three bedrooms, failure to repair leaks and doors, and mould damage to personal items.