High Court has passed a law to sue landlords who refuse or avoid returning deposits to their tenants.
The ruling was made by Justice Hellen Namisi of the High Court at Milimani Commercial and Tax Division on January 23rd 2025.
This was after Dr. Michelle Muhanda who had decided to move from her rented house on one of Nairobi’s upmarket estates, Woodlands Grove contacted her landlord for a deposit.
The tenant who had been living there for seven years was denied access to her deposit refund of Ksh. 230,000 by the manager, LP Holdings LTD.
Photo: Courtesy
Instead, the manager responded to a letter dated 10th May 2023 with a bill of up to Ksh.271,857 which were expected to cover repair works in the house from February 2015 to October 2023.
However, Dr. Muhanda argued that the house was in good shape when she left.
Since her request for deposit was unsuccessful, she filed a case before the Small Claims Court (SCC) seeking for refund Under the Consumer Protections Acts and Damages for breach of contract.
However, the SCC dismissed the case on Jurisdictional grounds which later on filed at the High Court.
Upon hearing the case, Justice Hellen Namisi stated that the SCC has jurisdiction to hear cases involving the refund of rents deposits as such claims fall under SCC Act.
With this, Dr. Muhanda demands 1,000,000 compensations from the manager who responded.
Justice Namisi also stated that SCC is an appropriate forum for post-tenancy disputes including claims for the return of rent deposits and damages against landlords who withdraw rents deposit refunds.
This clears way for tenants to demand their deposits and file cases for non-compliance.
