Pitiyage v Imran

Tenant wins · Mississauga · 2025-08-22

Adjudicator

Fabio Quattrociocchi

Dispute

Illegal Charges, Security Deposits

Amount

<$5K

Landlord

A.I., I.R.

Tenant

R.P., C.K.W.

What happened

The Tenants applied for a determination that the Landlords collected or retained money illegally, specifically a $300.00 key deposit and unpaid interest on their last month's rent deposit. The Landlords contended that they did not require deposits in the written lease and viewed the extra payments as pre-paid rent to be applied to potential damages or unpaid rent. However, the Tenants produced e-transfer records with specific memos identifying the payments as deposits.

The ruling

The Landlords are ordered to pay the Tenants $380.08 by September 2, 2025. This amount includes the $300.00 key deposit, $27.08 in interest on the rent deposit, and the $53.00 application filing fee. The Board found the Tenants' evidence of e-transfer memos more credible than the Landlords' claim that the funds were pre-paid rent, emphasizing that deposits must be handled according to the Act regardless of written lease omissions.