I recently came across a situation where a former tenant at a large apartment building suffered from severe pest infestation.
Apparently the tenant’s next-door neighbour attracted pests and the problem soon spread to the tenant’s apartment. The landlord offered treatments to eradicate the pest infestation, but the problem persisted. After several months, the tenant finally had enough and moved out.
Does the tenant have any remedy against the landlord, now that he has moved out?
Most lawyers I talked to answered yes. However, they couldn’t agree on what the proper forum should be (Small Claims Court or Landlord and Tenant Board?), let alone the remedies available to the tenant.
It turns out that the tenant in this case does have remedies before the Landlord and Tenant Board for abatement of rent, even if the tenant has moved out of the building.
The tenant may apply before the Board to determine whether the landlord has breached the responsibility to repair. If the landlord were to be found in breach of its duties, the tenant may claim the following remedies:
- abatement of rent (rebate)
- termination of tenancy
- specific sum of money including reasonable costs of repair and out-of-pocket expenses
