$20,000 Awarded to Napier Family After Infant Poisoned by Lead in Rental Home

By Lions Roar News Bureau

NAPIER, NEW ZEALAND (Saturday, January 24, 2026) — In a landmark ruling, the Tenancy Tribunal has awarded nearly $20,000 to a Napier couple after their 1-year-old son was exposed to dangerous levels of lead from peeling paint in their rented Marine Parade home.

The decision highlights a critical gap in rental standards, as the property was deemed “compliant” with Healthy Homes regulations despite harboring “actual and potentially serious harm” within its walls.

⚠️ A Medical Emergency

The family moved into the historic 1900s house in October 2024. By early 2025, a Plunket nurse noticed the toddler was unwell. Medical tests later revealed:

Dangerously low iron levels and Vitamin D deficiency.
“Worrying levels” of lead, arsenic, and cadmium in the boy’s blood.
Long-term risks: Doctors warned that while the child shows no immediate symptoms, there is “no safe level” of lead exposure, and it can permanently impact growth, cognition, and learning.

🏚️ The “Compliant” Danger

Health New Zealand Te Whatu Ora found lead in the home’s red and yellow exterior paint, on most interior surfaces, and even in the soil where the child played.

Despite this, the property manager, Pukeko Rental Managers, argued the house met all Healthy Homes Standards (covering insulation and heating). The tribunal adjudicator, Bryan King, however, ruled that landlords are legally required to protect occupants from lead contamination, regardless of whether a property passes a basic Healthy Homes check.

“They have had to find alternative, safe accommodation with urgency and in difficult circumstances,” King stated, noting the mother was forced to find a new home while caring for her poisoned son and a newborn baby.

💰 Tribunal Breakdown: $19,727 Award

Category	Amount Awarded	Reason
General Damages	$15,000	For rent paid for a premises that posed a health risk.
Quiet Enjoyment	$4,200	For the significant breach of the family’s peace and safety.
Moving Costs	$500	Compensation for the urgent relocation.
Filing Fee	$27	Refund of legal costs.

🛑 A Warning to Landlords

WorkSafe guidelines state that owners of pre-1980 buildings must assume paint is lead-based unless proven otherwise. The property manager involved has since stopped managing the $1.13 million property, stating he “did not want to manage that property anymore” once the contamination was revealed.