My tenant broke their lease at the end of March. I was told they lost their job because of Covid-19 and needed to return home. They vacated the property on their own accord and requested that their deposit be returned. Only notify the agent after they had vacated the property. My contract with them includes a break lease fee equivalent to that of the bond. I had advised that I would be willing to return their bond (break lease fee) should a replacement tenant be found given the current Covid-19 crisis. They would only be required to pay for the vacancy period between tenancies up to the value of 4 weeks. I understand that from April 15 there is a moratorium on eviction as a result of Covid-19 as well (not that they were evicted). A tenant was found to take on the lease 2 weeks later. The ex-tenant believes that they have a claim, and is attempting to challenge through the tribunal. How do they have a claim?
