Tenant Ordered to Remove Accumulated Rubbish
📌 In brief
The Tenancy Tribunal ordered a tenant to remove rubbish from the property by a specific deadline or face financial penalties up to $1,750.00. The Tribunal found the tenant in breach of the Residential Tenancies Act 1986 and the tenancy agreement for failing to maintain the premises in a clean and tidy condition.
⚖️ Legal holding
A tenant must keep the premises reasonably clean and tidy under the Residential Tenancies Act 1986.
📖 What the law says
This section states that a tenant is responsible for keeping the rented property reasonably clean and tidy during their tenancy. It also requires them to remove all their belongings and rubbish when they move out, leaving the premises in a reasonably clean and tidy state.
This section gives the Tenancy Tribunal the power to resolve disagreements between landlords and tenants that relate to tenancies covered by this Act. This includes deciding if a property is a residential premise under the Act and if a tenancy agreement exists.
Plain-English explanation — does not replace advice from a lawyer.
📖 Technical summary
The Tribunal ordered the tenant to remove rubbish from the property by a specific deadline or face financial penalties.
📜 Headnote Official document
The Tenancy Tribunal ordered the tenant to remove rubbish located beside the garage by a specific deadline or face financial penalties up to $1,750.00. The Tribunal found the tenant in breach of the Residential Tenancies Act 1986 and the tenancy agreement for failing to maintain the premises in a clean and tidy condition.
📚 Full judgment Official document
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[2025] NZTT 5090268
TENANCY TRIBUNAL AT REMOTE LOCATION | TE TARAIPIUNARA RETIHANGA
APPLICANT: [redacted]
Landlord
RESPONDENT: [redacted]
Tenant
TENANCY ADDRESS: [ADDRESS], [POSTCODE]
ORDER
1. [NAME] must remove the rubbish located on to the side the garage from [ADDRESS], Mount Wellington, Auckland by 5.00pm on Wednesday 8 April 2025
2. If the tenant fails to comply with order 1 above then the landlord may arrange for the rubbish to be removed and charge the tenant the reasonable costs of removal up to $1,750.00. Costs charged to the tenant are able to be enforced as a debt incurred by the tenant.
3. The application to remove the caravan is dismissed.
Reasons:
1. The landlord’s representative attended the hearing which was heard by telephone. The tenant was rung on the cell phone number provided by the landlord on the application at the start of the hearing, however the call would not connect. The landlord advised this was the most up to date telephone number for the tenant.
2. The landlord claims the tenant has breached their tenancy agreement and the Residential Tenancies Act 1986 (RTA) by accumulating rubbish and having a
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caravan at the property. The landlord seeks an order to have the rubbish and the caravan removed.
3. The landlord waives its right to reimbursement of the filing fee.
4. The tenancy commenced on 19 July 2023. The tenancy agreement allows no more than 4 people to live at the property.
5. The Tribunal can make an order that the tenant do anything necessary to remedy a breach of any term of the tenancy agreement of the RTA, or to do anything they are required to do by any provision in the RTA (section 77(2)(l), RTA).
The rubbish
6. Section 40(1)(c), RTA provides that a tenant is to keep the premises reasonably clean and tidy. The requirement applies to both the inside and outside of the premises.
7. Clause 9 of the tenancy agreement requires the tenant to “look after your new home and grounds by keeping them tidy”.
8. The evidence establishes that the tenant has been accumulating rubbish outside, to the side the garage since at least June 2024 when rubbish was noted during an inspection of the property.
9. The tenant was reminded to keep her grounds tidy in a 14 day breach notice issued to the tenant on 12 July 2024. The tenant was required to remove the rubbish in 14 day notices issued on 7 August and 2 December 2024. The rubbish was not removed and the landlord’s photographs show the amount of rubbish has increased and is now significant.
10. I find the tenant has breached s 40(1)(c) and the clause 9 of the tenancy agreement in not removing the rubbish. The tenant is responsible for the actions of others who are at the premises with her consent (s 41, RTA). Therefore as the rubbish is on the premises she is renting, the tenant is liable to remove all of the rubbish.
11. The landlord’s evidence shows that it has been trying to resolve this matter since June 2024. The tenant had been engaging with the landlord regarding removal of the rubbish, and at one point had removed some rubbish. However the tenant’s engagement appears to have stopped. The tenant has been given a reasonably lengthy time to remove the rubbish to date, and I am satisfied a timeframe must now be set for the removal of the rubbish. The pile of rubbish is unsightly and potentially causing other issues, including attracting vermin.
12. I have allowed three weeks for the tenant to remove the rubbish. If she does not do so by then, the landlord is able to arrange for the rubbish to be removed and
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charge the cost incurred to the tenant up to the cost of $1,750.00. This sum reflects the amount of rubbish that has accumulated.
The caravan
13. The landlord seeks removal of the caravan from the premises, which is located in the rear yard of the tenancy premises. The landlord claims people were living in the caravan in breach of tenancy agreement, and that its presence is effectively an invitation for others to live/sleep there in the future. The landlord also maintains the caravan is a fixture which it has not consented to.
14. Clause 16 of the tenancy agreement states: “no one can sleep or live in a garage, shed or caravan on the grounds of your new home”. Section 42 of the RTA prevents a tenant from affixing any fixture to the premises, or making any renovations, alterations, or additions to the premises except as allowed in the tenancy agreement or with the prior consent of the landlord.
15. The landlord’s application for an order that the tenant remove the caravan is dismissed for the following reasons:
a) The tenant is in breach of her tenancy agreement if anyone sleeps or lives in the caravan. The tenancy agreement does not prevent a tenant having a caravan on the tenancy premises. Clause 17 prevents the tenant from “making alterations to the premises”, however in my view having a caravan at the premises does not amount to an alteration to the premises.
b) The caravan is not a fixture. ‘Fixture’ is not defined in the RTA. The New Zealand Law Dictionary1 meaning of ‘fixtures’ is: “Chattels which are so annexed to land or to a building on land as to become part of it”. The caravan is not a fixture; from the evidence presented it is able to be moved by a vehicle equipped with a tow bar. The evidence does not establish that the caravan is in any way attached to the house or the land. Therefore I find the tenant has not breached section 42, RTA.
16. The landlord referred to a previous Tenancy Tribunal decision2 where it was found that 2 cabins were fixtures and were ordered to be removed. However as stated above I do not find that the landlord has proven that the caravan in this case is a fixture.
17. Having made this finding I emphasis to the tenant the importance of ensuring she does not breach Clause 16 of the tenancy agreement by having anyone sleep or live in the caravan. If she does, she may be issued with a further breach notice for having more people living at the premises than she is allowed.
1 [NAME] of New Zealand Law (10th ed, LexisNexis, Wellington, 2022) at page 123. 2 Kainga Ora v Marsters [2024] NZTT 4996789, 5058328
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under the tenancy agreement. The landlord is able to apply for termination for a continued breach of this nature.
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[NAME]
18 March 2025
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Please read carefully: Visit justice.govt.nz/tribunals/tenancy/rehearings-appeals for more information on rehearings and appeals.
Rehearings You can apply for a rehearing if you believe that a substantial wrong or miscarriage of justice has happened. For example: • you did not get the letter telling you the date of the hearing, or • the adjudicator improperly admitted or rejected evidence, or • new evidence, relating to the original application, has become available.
You must give reasons and evidence to support your application for a rehearing. A rehearing will not be granted just because you disagree with the decision. You must apply within five working days of the decision using the Application for Rehearing form: justice.govt.nz/assets/Documents/Forms/TT-Application-for-rehearing.pdf
Right of Appeal Both the landlord and the tenant can file an appeal. You should file your appeal at the District Court where the original hearing took place. The cost for an appeal is $260. You must apply within 10 working days after the decision is issued using this Appeal to the District Court form: justice.govt.nz/tribunals/tenancy/rehearings-appeals
Grounds for an appeal You can appeal if you think the decision was wrong, but not because you don’t like the decision. For some cases, there’ll be no right to appeal. For example, you can’t appeal: • against an interim order • a final order for the payment of less than $1000 • a final order to undertake work worth less than $1000.
Enforcement Where the Tribunal made an order about money or property this is called a civil debt. The Ministry of Justice Collections Team can assist with enforcing civil debt. You can contact the collections team on [PHONE] or go to justice.govt.nz/fines/civil-debt for forms and information.
Notice to a party ordered to pay money or vacate premises, etc. Failure to comply with any order may result in substantial additional costs for enforcement. It may also involve being ordered to appear in the District Court for an examination of your means or seizure of your property.
If you require further help or information regarding this matter, visit tenancy.govt.nz/disputes/enforcing- decisions or phone Tenancy Services on [PHONE].
Mēna ka hiahia koe ki ētahi atu awhina, kōrero ranei mo tēnei take, haere ki tenei ipurangi tenancy.govt.nz/disputes/enforcing-decisions, waea atu ki Ratonga Takirua ma runga [PHONE] ranei.
https://www.justice.govt.nz/tribunals/tenancy/rehearings-appeals https://www.justice.govt.nz/assets/Documents/Forms/TT-Application-for-rehearing.pdf https://www.justice.govt.nz/tribunals/tenancy/rehearings-appeals/ https://www.justice.govt.nz/fines/about-civil-debt/ https://www.tenancy.govt.nz/disputes/enforcing-decisions https://www.tenancy.govt.nz/disputes/enforcing-decisions http://www.tenancy.govt.nz/disputes/enforcing-decisions/
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A manaomia nisi faamatalaga poo se fesoasoani, e uiga i lau mataupu, asiasi ifo le matou aupega tafailagi: tenancy.govt.nz/disputes/enforcing-decisions, pe fesootai mai le Tenancy Services i le numera [PHONE].
Reasons:
⚖️ What tends to weigh in cases like this
✅ Tends to be accepted
- The tenant must keep the premises reasonably clean and tidy according to the Residential Tenancies Act 1986.
- The tenant has been accumulating rubbish outside the premises since at least June 2024.
- The tenant was reminded multiple times to remove the rubbish but failed to do so.
- The landlord has tried to resolve the issue since June 2024 through various notices and reminders.
❌ Tends to be rejected
- The landlord cannot force the tenant to remove the caravan as it is not considered a fixture under the law.
- The presence of the caravan does not constitute an alteration to the premises as defined by the tenancy agreement.
- The landlord's previous case involving cabins does not apply to this situation with a caravan.
Patterns observed in similar cases in this collection — every case is unique.
❓ Frequently asked questions
What did this decision decide?
The Tenancy Tribunal ordered the tenant to remove rubbish from the property by a specific deadline or face financial penalties up to $1,750.00.
What was the dispute about?
The dispute was about the accumulation of rubbish on the tenant's property, which the landlord claimed was in breach of the tenancy agreement and the Residential Tenancies Act 1986.
How did the court decide, and why?
The court decided that the tenant must remove the rubbish by a specific deadline or face financial penalties because the tenant failed to maintain the premises in a clean and tidy condition as required by the tenancy agreement and the Residential Tenancies Act 1986.
Which laws or rules were applied?
The Residential Tenancies Act 1986, sections 40(1)(c) and 77(2)(l), were applied.
What was the argument that mattered most?
The argument that mattered most was that the tenant was in breach of the tenancy agreement and the Residential Tenancies Act 1986 for failing to maintain the premises in a clean and tidy condition.
Was the decision for or against the person who brought the case?
The decision was against the tenant who brought the case.
What does this mean for someone in a similar situation?
For someone in a similar situation, it means they must ensure that the premises are kept clean and tidy as required by the tenancy agreement and the Residential Tenancies Act 1986.
What evidence or documents mattered?
The landlord's photographs showing the accumulation of rubbish and the tenant's failure to remove it despite multiple reminders mattered in the decision.