Tenant who felt threatened by landlord sued for moving out without notice

A tenant who moved out of a shared accommodation without notice got sued by the landlord, who claimed the tenant also didn’t pay what was owed for rent.

A case between Ka Yan Mok and Zhi Xiong Guan was brought to the BC Civil Resolution Tribunal.

Mok was renting a room from Guan, and Guan claimed that Mok moved out on September 12, 2022, without proper notice and that she also didn’t pay rent for that month.

Guan sought $760, which included $480 for unpaid rent between September 1 and 12 and $280 for failure to give the “allegedly agreed upon” one-week notice.

You might also like:
• Landlord keeps vacation rental deposit over beet juice stains
• BC woman takes couple to court after they refuse to return her dog
• Renter sues landlord after being evicted for "tapping his feet to music"

In response, while Mok admitted that she didn’t pay Guan anything for September, she claimed that Guan misrepresented the rental “by failing to tell her that another tenant would be occupying the bedroom next to hers.”

Mok also claimed that Guan threatened her, making her feel unsafe.

Mok began renting a room on the ground floor of Guan’s home starting in August 2022. Guan and his family live on the top floor. There was no written agreement, but $1,200 monthly for rent was agreed upon. Guan decided to charge only $1,000 since Mok arrived later in August.

Mok paid August rent late, and on August 31, Guan gave Mok verbal notice to move by September 30. On September 12, Mok vacated the rental without notice.

As mentioned, Mok claimed the rental was misrepresented. Mok says Guan advertised it as a one-bedroom suite with a private washroom. Mok says if Guan told her someone else would be occupying a second bedroom on the ground floor, she wouldn’t have rented the place.

Guan claimed that the rental advertisement did set out that it was shared, and based on provided evidence, the tribunal agreed.

Regarding the threat claims, Mok says that on August 31, Guan got angry and threatened her verbally, but she couldn’t say what the threats were. Mok also claimed that Guan threatened to disclose her personal information online and claimed that some other tenants were gangsters.

“She says she was terrified, and so she went to her room and called the police. After the police arrived, Ms. Mok says the police informed her to leave if she felt unsafe.”

Due to a lack of evidence, the tribunal did not agree with Mok’s claims.

The tribunal ordered Mok to pay Guan $783.25, including $280 for not giving notice, $480 for unpaid rent, and tribunal fees.