The tenant received the email after the landlord was issued an Improvement Notice to resolve a complaint made by the tenant about the rental property. 

In his decision, the Tenancy Tribunal adjudicator, Rex Woodhouse stated that “there are strong interests for tenants and the public generally, that when termination notices are given, they are only given lawfully. Ending a person’s tenancy is a very significant step to take.”

The case was opened following a complaint lodged by a third-party with the Tenancy Compliance and Investigations Team (TCIT) at the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE). While the complaint was regarding water ingress concerns at the property, the source of the water leak could not be found without invasive work being completed. However, an electrical fault was also noted by TCIT. It appeared that there was no power in the living area and one bedroom of the property. 

On 16 November 2023, TCIT issued an Improvement Notice requiring the landlord, Ms Wei Zhang, to address the electrical fault. When TCIT spoke to Ms Zhang, to advise of the Improvement Notice, she said she would send an email to the tenants to end their tenancy. 

Within 15 minutes of TCIT sending the Improvement Notice to Ms Zhang she sent an email to TCIT with the tenants copied in terminating the tenancy, saying she wanted to redecorate and live in the house.

TCIT contacted the landlord saying that they believed the termination notice to be retaliatory.

A ‘retaliatory notice’ is where a landlord gives notice to a tenant to end a tenancy in retaliation for a tenant standing up for their rights. For example, if they make a complaint about the tenancy.

If a landlord issues a retaliatory notice the tenant can apply to the Tribunal to have the notice set aside. The tenant must apply within 28 working days of receiving the notice.

More information on retaliatory notices can be found here:
Giving notice to end a tenancy

In December 2023, on behalf of MBIE, TCIT lodged an application with the Tenancy Tribunal seeking a declaration that the notice ending the tenancy was retaliatory and therefore of no effect.

In their order of 19 January 2024, the Tenancy Tribunal said that the landlord had acted intentionally. They were satisfied that when the landlord issued the termination notice to the tenant, it was at least partly motivated by the complaint. This was the factor that made it retaliatory. 

While the landlord had stated that the termination notice was issued as she wanted to move into the property herself, she provided no evidence of this to the Tribunal, who found that the evidence provided by TCIT supported a finding that the landlords actions were retaliatory.

Since 2017, TCIT has taken a total of 3 cases to the Tenancy Tribunal concerning retaliatory notice. TCIT National Manager Brett Wilson says, “landlords should be aware that they cannot terminate a tenancy because the tenant has complained or TCIT decided to take enforcement action against the landlord.”

He further noted that there are “protections like these in place for tenants who do complain about their tenancy and TCIT will take steps to enforce these protections as everyone has the right to live in a warm, dry and safe home.”

Tenancy Tribunal decision:
9859597 Tribunal Order [PDF, 53.8KB](external link) — Ministry of Justice

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