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A New Zealand landlord has been ordered to pay more than $600 to his tenant for unannounced property inspections.
Christchurch woman Harman Sonia was left distressed and embarrassed after she learnt her landlord had taken a photo of her when she was lying in bed on one of his impromptu visits, the NZ Herald reported.
Ms Sonia took her case to the tenancy tribunal to claim exemplary damages for unlawful entry by the landlord and interference with her quiet enjoyment of the premises, court documents show.
Landlord Harinder Khinda and his wife showed up at the property twice to carry out inspections without giving any notice. And on one of those visits, in August 2018, he took a photo of Ms Sonia without her permission.
However, she was not aware of the photo until the landlord presented it to the Tenancy Tribunal as part of his application against the tenant.
His application was thrown out as the tribunal found Mr Khinda’s behaviour to have a “cavalier disregard” for the tenant’s rights.
The tribunal did not think the landlord’s actions were harassment as there was no pattern of behaviour towards the tenant that could amount to harassment.
Mr Khinda will have to pay the tenant a total of $620.44, which includes a filing fee reimbursement.
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