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Taiwan Strait Net, August 24 (Reporter Chen Jie, Strait Herald, Correspondent Sifa) Many people are "terrified" of "cockroaches". If the rented house is full of cockroaches, it will really make people feel creepy. Recently, Siming Court heard such a case. A tenant claimed that he rented a "cockroach nest" and sued the landlord to cancel the lease.

"Lots of cockroaches, so scary, I don't dare live here"

Previously, tenant Xiao Li (pseudonym) rented a three-bedroom apartment under the introduction of an agent, with a monthly rent of 9,000 yuan, one deposit and three payments. After signing the "Lease Contract" with the landlord Sister Zhang (pseudonym), Xiao Li paid the first installment of 27,000 yuan in rent and a deposit of 9,000 yuan.

There were three days before the lease began to move. On the first day, Xiao Li found cockroaches when he went in to clean, so he reported it to the landlord: "There are many dead cockroaches in the cabinets, furniture, and corners, and there are live cockroaches running around! I bought several bottles of cockroach medicine and sprayed them all, and also asked the cleaning staff to clean it, but there was no effect, and there were still many cockroaches running out! It's terrible, I dare not live here, I must find a professional pest control company!"

In response, the landlord, Ms. Zhang, said: "I know a cockroach medicine called 'Quan Mie' that is very effective. We will go to the site tomorrow to check it out and bring some for you."

The next day, because the landlord did not bring the "Quan Mie" brand cockroach medicine, the two sides had a big quarrel and even called the police. Xiao Li asked to terminate the contract, but Zhang did not agree. On the same day, Xiao Li notified Zhang on WeChat that he wanted to terminate the contract, return the house key to the agent, and rent another house in the same community.

“There are cockroaches in the house”, can I cancel the lease?

Two months later, Xiao Li filed a lawsuit in court, demanding that Zhang return the deposit of 9,000 yuan and the rent of 27,000 yuan, and compensate for the breach of contract, agency fees, pesticides and cleaning fees totaling 14,000 yuan.

In court, both parties held different opinions. Xiao Li believed that cockroaches were one of the four recognized pests, and that there were so many cockroaches in this house, which seriously endangered the health and safety of the residents. According to the contract, the lessor should ensure the safety of the house and should not endanger personal safety, so he had the right to terminate the lease contract and require the landlord to bear the liability for breach of contract.

However, the landlord, Ms. Zhang, believed that cockroaches were common indoors and far from being a threat to safety or health. The day after she called the police, she had professional cockroach exterminators in the house, and the house had been exterminated, so it did not affect living. Xiao Li’s unilateral termination of the contract based on the “cockroaches in the house” was a lack of integrity. Therefore, the contract should continue to be performed.

Decision: Return of deposit and rent

Siming Court held at first instance that Xiao Li had not actually moved in, and his evidence was insufficient to prove that there were cockroaches to the extent that they endangered personal health and safety, so Xiao Li’s claim for termination of the contract and breach of contract was not in line with the contract agreement and legal provisions. However, Xiao Li had returned the keys and rented another place. The landlord did not inform Xiao Li after disinfecting the house, and also told the agent that he could rent to someone else. The disputed lease contract could not be performed in fact and should be terminated according to law. There were indeed cockroaches in the house and they were the main cause of the dispute, so the landlord should return the deposit and rent to Xiao Li. Xiao Li looked at the house twice before signing the contract. At that time, he found that the house was particularly dirty and there were several cockroaches, but he did not conduct a detailed inspection and did not make any requirements for the cleaning of the house. Taking into account the principles of fairness and good faith, Xiao Li should bear the relevant expenses incurred by signing the contract.

Therefore, the court made a first-instance judgment, supporting both parties to terminate the lease contract, and the landlord should return the deposit and rent to Xiao Li; the court did not support Xiao Li's claim that the landlord should bear the liability for breach of contract.