My landlord is retaliating against me. What can I do?

Section 25 of the Residential Tenancies Act bars a landlord from ending a tenancy or taking retaliatory action, including a financial penalty, only because the tenant made an application, filed a statement, made a complaint, assisted in an investigation or gave evidence under the Act or the Public Health Act. Breaking it is an offence with a fine of up to $5,000. The Act has no general ban on harassment, and breaching the peaceful enjoyment covenant carries no fine, but a tenant can claim damages or rent abatement from the court or the Residential Tenancy Dispute Resolution Service.

A notice to end a periodic tenancy without a fault has no effect unless the reason is one the rules allow. A tenant can object in writing to a 14 day notice for a breach other than unpaid rent before the termination date, and the landlord must then get an order.

The Residential Tenancy Act makes it an offence to coerce, threaten, intimidate or harass a tenant to deter an application, or in retaliation for seeking or getting a remedy, with a fine of up to $5,000. Other harassment is dealt with as a breach of quiet enjoyment, which the Residential Tenancy Branch's guideline describes as substantial interference. The Branch can order the landlord to comply, reduce rent, order compensation and impose administrative penalties of up to $5,000, per day if it continues.

A tenant who disputes a One Month Notice for cause has 10 days to apply to the Branch. A breach of quiet enjoyment has been found to be a breach of a material term, so a tenant can give written notice and end the tenancy if the landlord does not fix it within a reasonable time.

The Residential Tenancies Act bars a landlord from interfering with a tenant's enjoyment of the unit or complex for all usual purposes (s.62(1)), threatening to withhold promised services (s.61) or seizing a tenant's belongings (s.63). We found no section that names retaliation or harassment as a landlord duty. The Branch can order the landlord to comply, stop, compensate you or let you fix the problem at the landlord's cost, and depriving a tenant of rights under the Act can be an offence with a fine of up to $2,000 for an individual and $10,000 for a corporation.

After written notice and a failure to fix, a tenant can end the tenancy for a breach of s.62(1) on one rental period's notice, or 5 days if there is a health or safety risk. A tenant has no form to file to dispute a landlord's notice and answers at the hearing if the landlord applies for an order of possession.

The Residential Tenancies Act gives tenants a right to quiet enjoyment and the regulations say that includes disturbances created by the landlord. We found no section that names harassment, threats or coercion. At a hearing a tenant can ask for relief against a notice given in retaliation for a good-faith complaint to a municipality about health or safety standards, or for enforcing their rights (s.70(11)). A hearing officer can order the landlord to stop and comply, order rent to be paid to the director, or award damages.

A tenant can dispute most for-cause notices by giving the landlord written notice within 15 days after receiving it, and the landlord must then apply to the Office of Residential Tenancies and prove the case. Staying in the unit is not a dispute.

The Residential Tenancies Act bars a landlord from harassing, obstructing, coercing, threatening or interfering with a tenant (s.23) and from substantially interfering with reasonable enjoyment (s.22). A tenant can apply to the Landlord and Tenant Board within one year of the conduct. The Board can order the landlord to stop, abate rent, pay expenses, pay an administrative fine, or end the tenancy. Knowingly harassing a tenant, or harassing a tenant into moving out, is an offence with fines of up to $100,000 for an individual and $500,000 for a corporation.

If a landlord applies to evict, the tenant can attend the hearing and the Board must refuse the eviction in certain cases, including where the application is retaliation. A notice does not end the tenancy unless the tenant leaves, both sides agree or the Board orders an eviction.

The Residential Tenancies Act has no quiet enjoyment section and no general ban on landlord harassment, but it protects tenants who complain. A notice of termination served within one year after a complaint is not valid if the tenant tells an officer in writing within 15 days that they contest it, and the landlord cannot satisfy the officer that the complaint was not the reason. A rent increase notice within 6 months after a complaint can be challenged the same way. The Human Rights Act also bars evicting someone for making a human rights complaint.

An officer can order the landlord to comply, and can end the tenancy on the tenant's application if the landlord is unwilling or financially unable to comply. Staying put is not a dispute, because silence for 15 days counts as acceptance of a notice.

The Residential Tenancies Act says the Director or the Small Claims Court may refuse to use their powers in the landlord's favour, or set aside a notice to quit, if they believe the landlord acted in retaliation for the tenant trying to secure or enforce their rights. The Act has no anti-harassment section aimed at landlords, but statutory condition 3 says a landlord and tenant must not interfere with each other's possession or occupancy. Acting against a tenant for going to a government authority is also an offence, with a fine of up to $1,000.

The Director can order the landlord to comply, make repairs, pay compensation or pay money, and can order rent to be paid in trust. For some notices the tenant applies to the Director to set the notice aside, and the Act sets no deadline for that application.

The Residential Tenancy Act gives tenants a right to quiet enjoyment, including freedom from unreasonable disturbance, and makes it an offence to coerce, threaten, intimidate or harass a tenant to deter an application or in retaliation for seeking a remedy, with a fine of up to $25,000. We found no stand-alone harassment ban beyond those two rules. The Director can order compensation, a rent reduction, compensation for inconvenience, compliance and administrative monetary penalties of up to $10,000.

A tenant can dispute a for-cause notice by applying to the Director within 10 days. A tenant who does not dispute in time is deemed to have accepted the end date.

A landlord cannot terminate or give notice to terminate a rental agreement, or coerce, threaten, intimidate or harass a tenant or the tenant's family, in retaliation for or to deter a complaint or application (s.29). A tenant served with a notice they believe is retaliation can apply to the director within one month for an order that the agreement is not terminated. Breaching the condition on peaceful enjoyment also lets the tenant give 5 to 14 days' notice to end the tenancy.

The director can order compensation, compliance, compensation for inconvenience that the tenant may offset against rent, and a ruling on whether a notice is valid. Contravening the Act or an order is an offence with fines of up to $3,000 for an individual and $10,000 for a corporation, imposed by the court.