Tenant not liable to pay illegal rent
30. (1) No tenant is liable to pay any rent in excess of that permitted to be charged under this Act. Application re illegal rent (2) A tenant may apply to a Chief Rent Officer for an order determining that a landlord has charged the tenant an amount of rent that is in excess of that permitted by this Act, the Residential Rent Regulation Act, Part XI of the Residential Tenancies Act, being chapter 452 of the Revised Statutes of Ontario, 1980, or The Residential Premises Rent Review Act, 1975 (2nd Session). Findings and order (3) On an application under subsection (2), a rent officer shall determine, in accordance with the prescribed rules, whether the landlord has charged the tenant an amount of rent that is in excess of that permitted by this Act, the Residential Rent Regulation Act, Part XI of the Residential Tenancies Act, being chapter 452 of the Revised Statutes of Ontario, 1980, or The Residential Premises Rent Review Act, 1975 (2nd Session) and shall by order declare, (a) the maximum rent for the rental unit concerned and the earliest date the maximum rent took effect or takes effect; (b) the rent that may be charged, if that is less than the maximum rent, the earliest date on which that rent took effect or takes effect and the period it is to be in effect; and (c) the amount, if any, of excess rent paid by the tenant to a landlord that the landlord owes to the tenant, if that amount is equal to or less than the monetary jurisdiction of the Small Claims Court. Idem (4) If the amount of excess rent owing is equal to or less than the monetary jurisdiction of the Small Claims Court, the rent officer shall also order the landlord to pay the excess rent owing to the tenant plus any interest on that amount. Idem (5) If the amount of excess rent owing is more than the monetary jurisdiction of the Small Claims Court, (a) the tenant may, by notice in writing in the prescribed form filed with the rent officer, abandon the excess over the monetary jurisdiction of the Small Claims Court and seek an order for payment; or (b) the tenant may commence a proceeding in any court of competent jurisdiction for an order requiring the landlord to pay the full amount owed. Idem (6) If the tenant seeks an order under clause (5) (a), the rent officer may make an order for the landlord to pay to the tenant an amount equal to the monetary jurisdiction of the Small Claims Court plus any interest on that amount and all rights of the tenant in excess of that amount are extinguished. Idem (7) If the tenant commences a proceeding under clause (5) (b), the court may exercise any powers that the rent officer could have exercised had the proceeding been before the rent officer and within his or her jurisdiction. Order to deduct from rent (8) If the landlord who made the illegal charge is the tenant’s landlord at the time of the order, the order may provide that if the landlord fails to pay the amount owing under the order, the tenant may recover that amount plus interest as may be directed in the order by deducting a specified sum from the tenant’s rent paid to the landlord for a specified number of rent payment periods. Idem (9) Nothing in subsection (8) limits the right of the tenant to collect at any time the full amount owing or any balance outstanding under the order. Interest (10) Interest shall be ordered at the rate set for postjudgment interest under the Courts of Justice Act, and the interest payable shall be calculated in accordance with the prescribed rules. Small Claims Court jurisdiction (11) In any area in which the monetary jurisdiction of the Small Claims Court is less than $5,000, a reference in this section to the monetary jurisdiction of the Small Claims Court shall be deemed to be a reference to $5,000. Limitation (12) No order shall be made for any money paid more than six years before the filing date of the tenant’s application under this section. Who may make application (13) A person may make an application under this section as a tenant of a rental unit if the person was a tenant of that rental unit at the time the conduct giving rise to the application occurred even if the person is no longer a tenant of that rental unit at the time of the application. Subtenant (14) If a tenant of a rental unit sublets it or attempts to sublet it to another person, this section applies with necessary modifications to the tenant and the other person as if the tenant were a landlord and the other person were a tenant. 1992, c. 11, s. 30. Illegal Additional Charges