Cancer Council NSW
A landlord was ordered to pay more than $11,000 to a tenant after second-hand smoke from a neighbour made the home unliveable.
Ms Laming and her young daughter had been renting an apartment in inner Sydney. After some time, she complained to her landlord about the smoke from a resident who was smoking in the unit below. She was concerned about the health effects on herself and her child.
The landlord did not take any action, so Ms Laming took her case to the NSW Civil and Administrative Tribunal.
The Tribunal agreed with Ms Laming that her unit was not fit for habitation. The Tribunal found that it was not acceptable for a tenant and a child to live in an environment which smelt of tobacco smoke, particularly when the smoke was so strong that it caused them to feel unwell.