A B.C. renter initiated a legal fight against her former landlord in hopes of getting her security deposit back, all while making some fairly substantial claims against him.
According to the renter and the BC Civil Resolution Tribunal decision, she rented a room in the landlord’s home, but after staying there for just two days in late April 2025, she found out that the landlord and three others living in the home “took drugs and were alcoholics.”
She told the tribunal she felt unsafe, so she returned her key to the landlord and claims the landlord promised to return her deposit.
The tenant claimed $475 for the deposit and an additional $4,525 for “added expenses.”
In response to her claims, the landlord told the tribunal he does not use drugs, nor is he an alcoholic. He fired his own accusations back, suggesting the tenant has a criminal record and that she became agitated when he confronted her about going through his personal property.
Regarding the deposit claims, he told the tribunal he told her he’d agree to return the deposit if he found a renter for May 1, 2025, but said he couldn’t because the tenant started an “internet smear campaign.”
The tribunal points out that there was no written rental agreement between the two parties, so the tribunal case was based on “implied terms.”
Addressing her claims, the tribunal said that the landlord would not be entitled to withhold the deposit if the landlord or guests caused her to fear for her safety. The issue for the tenant is that the tribunal said she provided no evidence to support her claims that the landlord was an alcoholic and that there was active drug use going on.
The tribunal also said that it wouldn’t have ordered payment of her “added expenses” for $4,525 due to the fact that the tenant did not provide any information about those expenses, nor did she have any evidence regarding those claims.
B.C. does allow special circumstances to end a tenancy. The majority of rental terminations are at the behest of the landlord, not the tenant. They include unforeseen circumstances like a flood, fire, or earthquake.
“Sometimes landlords and tenants may disagree on whether an event causes a frustrated tenancy. For example, a tenant may refuse to leave when a fire damages their unit. If one party doesn’t agree that the tenancy was frustrated, they can apply for dispute resolution,” B.C. states.
A tenancy can also be ended early if there’s a breach of a material term.
“For example, if the tenant chose the rental unit because it had an elevator, the tenant could negotiate a material term in the tenancy agreement that requires a working elevator in the building,” the government states.
A landlord and tenant can also formally and mutually agree to end a tenancy. They just need to sign a mutual agreement to end tenancy form.
In the tribunal case at hand involving the allegations of drug use, the tribunal dismissed all claims from the B.C. renter due to a lack of evidence.