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Section 56 Notices
These warning notices are often incorrectly called 10 day notice to remedy. In fact they are called section 56 notices. This section of the RTA specifies that the last day for compliance with the matters in the notice must be not less than 10 working days after the date it is served.
A “working day” means any day other than –
- A Saturday or Sunday
- Queens birthday, Anzac day, Labour Day, and Waitangi Day
- The local (provincial) anniversary day
- A day in the period commencing with Good Friday and expiring with the Tuesday after Easter
- A day in the period commencing with the 24th December and expiring with the 3rd day of January.
It should be remembered that Tenancy Tribunals are normally closed until the second or even third week in January. Also, many Tenancy Services staff are on holiday at this time. Problems at this time of the year can quickly turn into significant issues. Because of the Christmas/New Year close down, combined with the normal over-spending and domestic violence associated with this time of year, it is common for case backlogs to occur into late January and February.
Separately served invoices for water charges or tenant-liable repairs like broken windows should have a date by when the account is to be paid. These can also be used in section 56 notices, despite not being the most common reason for issuing a Section 56 / 10 day Notice.
--Perry 23:05, 23 September 2007 (NZST)
