Limiting Laundry Access:

Question: How can a tenant in Ontario respond if their landlord limits or interferes with laundry access that’s stated in the lease?

Answer:   If you’re dealing with restricted laundry access in Ontario, Access Ontario Legal Services can help by reviewing your lease terms, documenting the interference, and guiding you on next steps to seek compensation or a rent abatement at the Landlord and Tenant Board; a recent example is JD v. LD’S, which addressed a landlord’s unilateral changes to laundry access that materially interfered with the tenant’s reasonable enjoyment of the unit.   In that decision, the Board ordered monetary laundry-cost reimbursement and a rent abatement after the landlord limited access beyond what the lease permitted, even though the landlord said it was meant to reduce tenant tensions.   For practical help tailored to your situation, contact (905) 302-1851 to discuss your options with a paralegal at Access Ontario Legal Services in Ontario.

Decision Summary: JD v. LD'S, CET-63203-16 (Re)

The case of JD v. LD'S, 2017 CanLII 28729, provides an important decision from the Landlord and Tenant Board regarding the improper interference or disruption with the use of laundry facilities by the landlord.  The legal dispute between the landlord and the tenant arose after the landlord attempted to alter laundry facilities access despite that the lease agreement expressly stated that the tenant, JG, could access the laundry facilities twice per week by contacting the upstairs tenants.  The landlord, despite the twice per week term within the lease agreement, attempted to impose a condition that access to the laundry facilities be limted to a three-hour period, once per week, and only on Sunday.

Factual Details

In June 2016, new tenants moved upstairs.  Subsequently, LD's restricted laundry access to Sundays between 11:00AM and 2:00PM.  As JG worked in construction and needed to do laundry regularly, JG faced difficulties with the new schedule and needed to use a laundromat to supplement the unilaterally imposed once-a-week laundry access.

Decision Reasons

The Landlord Tenant Board found that the change in laundry arrangements significantly interfered with the reasonable enjoyment of the property by the tenant.  The shift to a fixed time on Sundays for laundry use represented a substantial interference compared to the previous arrangement without any time restrictions.  While the Landlord Tenant Board acknowledged that the landlord was imposing the laundry access restrictions for the purpose of mediating tensions between tenants, the Landlord Tenant Board ruled in favour of JG.

Remedy Granted

The Landlord Tenant Board granted $200.00 for laundry costs as compensation to the tenant.  Additionally, the Landlord Tenant Board awarded a rent abatement of ten percent per month for six months to the tenant.

Full Case

The official case judgment is available here: JD v. LD's, 2017 CanLII 28729

Conclusion

This decision in this case shows that even when a landlord is imposing a change in access to amenities for the purpose of relieving tensions between tenants, the imposition remains as an interference in the rights of the tenant.