Evicted BC tenant claims over $100K in legal fight over BBQ smoke

After a BC strata tenant was evicted, she pursued a legal fight in a case focused on concerns about BBQ heat and smoke.

The publicly posted decision states that Tamara Heitner sought numerous damages against the BC strata building she once lived in.

Her claims for damages included $8,000 for smoke and heat nuisance, over $25,000 for damages regarding her mental well-being, $5,000 for “treating her differently,” and over $90,000 in damages as a result of her eviction, which included rent payments, transportation costs, and a basic TV cable package.

The strata told the BC Civil Resolution Tribunal that Heitner’s claims were an “abuse of process” and disagreed with every last one of her claims.

In response, the strata also asked for damages of $21,846 for dispute-related legal fees. The tribunal had a lot of information to sort through to determine who won the case.

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Heitner began renting her unit in 2015 until May 22, 2021, when she moved out because her unit sold, and the new owner wanted to occupy it.

Her issues began in March 2020 when she complained about smoke and heat coming from neighbouring barbeques. She initially complained to her landlord, who then passed those complaints on to the strata. Heitner felt like BBQ smoke and heat were a nuisance to her, which impacted her right to use and enjoy her unit. On top of those claims, she also felt like the strata failed to reasonably investigate the concerns on her behalf.

One of her claims was that barbeques were not permitted on patios and balconies, but due to some bylaw amendments that were made during her time there, the tribunal dismissed this claim.

Heitner lived in unit 404 and complained about smoke coming from below at unit 104. She submitted videos into evidence that showed smoke rising, but they didn’t show smoke entering her unit. That BBQ was eventually moved so it wasn’t directly beneath her unit. She also had complaints about the BBQ being used at unit 304.

She claimed that smoke from the BBQs was raising the heat in her own unit, but she was unable to prove this claim.

The tribunal did accept that Heitner was adversely affected by the smoke, but it found no objective evidence to support that the strata’s nuisance bylaws were violated. The tribunal also found no evidence that the strata treated Heitner significantly unfairly.

One final claim that Heitner had was that she was evicted because of the strata’s actions. The tribunal found more evidence that her actions caused the relationship between her and the landlord to deteriorate.

After reviewing all the details and evidence of this legal fight, the tribunal dismissed the claims of the BC tenant and the strata.