Tenants confronted with menacing cane toads in the garden area on arrival at their new Cannon Hill rental immediately contacted managing agents L. J. Hooker Cleveland over their concern for their dog.
The small breed terrier – a Jack Russell – was specified on the lease as being allowed at the premises provided it was never allowed inside the home.
With no response from LJH, the tenants issued a notice to leave on the grounds that the home was “unfit to live in”.
The agents forfeited the bond forcing the tenants to apply to the Queensland Civil & Administrative Tribunal to have it returned together with the cost of emergency accommodation.
QCAT agreed that cane toads are a public health risk and can kill canines. It awarded a refund of the bond and the cost of emergency accommodation totaling $4.2k to the tenants.
In a similar case, the nature and location of an Alderley home were such that, the landlord’s obligation – to provide premises reasonably fit for habitation – was considered by QCAT not to have been breached by reason of the “occasional rat infestation”, provided it was remedied promptly by the landlord’s agent, Belle Property at Wilston.
General information only, not legal advice. Your situation may differ; speak to a lawyer about your own circumstances.