A Montreal landlord has been ordered to pay $10,000 in damages after ignoring decontamination requests from a family of tenants affected by mold, endangering the health of their two children in their home.
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“The court […] is of the opinion that this mold is most likely the cause of the sudden asthma in the tenant's small children,” regrets Judge Anne Mailfait of the Administrative Housing Tribunal (TAL).
Property on Ridgewood Avenue in Montreal owned by Dov Amzallag. The apartment where the mold issue is located is in this building. Photo Pierre Paul Poulin
In the decision issued a few weeks ago, we learned that Gestion Groupe GDR Inc., a company belonging to Dov Amzallag, was found guilty of “bodily harm” to two teenagers aged 8 and 10.
Her father, Rachid Hebbar, confided in the Journal that he experienced a lot of stress at this accommodation on Ridgewood Avenue in Montreal.
“When we left the apartment for a trip, my son and daughter really felt better. “We came home and the asthma symptoms were back,” sighs Mr. Hebbar.
He refused decontamination for three years
The TAL also points out that a pulmonologist even wrote a report recommending the decontamination of their home in order to “cure the asthma symptoms observed in his children.”
Rachid Hebbar also formally requested the owner to take action in February 2023, but his request remained unanswered. Just like the other inquiries on this topic over three years.
Mr. Amzallag, owner of the building where a family of tenants endangered the health of their two small children because he refused to clean up the mold in their apartment. Photo from Dov Amzallag's Facebook account
Dov Amzallag's company, based in Côte-Saint-Luc, also received a report from the municipal inspection on March 15, 2023. Authorities gave her 15 days to take action to remove the mold. “The owner does not inform the tenant about the monitoring of these requirements,” states Judge Anne Mailfait.
In this context, Mr. Hebbar decides not to renew his rental agreement in order to protect the health of his children.
“By more than a coincidence, the landlord decided on May 31st, seven days after the tenant’s notice of non-renewal, to carry out the work required by the city,” criticizes the TAL. The latter describes the owner’s behavior as a “malicious attempt to mislead the tenant.”
Punished by paying “peanuts”
The court ultimately ruled that Dov Amzallag’s company acted in “bad faith.” The judge specified that he “acted strategically to end the enjoyment of the premises and to evict it for re-letting”.
Mr. Amzallag must therefore pay his former tenants $2,000 in physical damages and $8,000 in punitive damages.
Rachid Hebbar and his family fled their home, located in this building, in May 2023 to save their health, which had already been damaged by mold. Photo Pierre Paul Poulin
“He will pay peanuts for putting my children’s health at risk,” protests Rachid Hebbar, whose daughter is still sick today.
Dov Amzallag was not available to speak to the Journal about the decision.
“He would like to make it clear that the situation surrounding this judgment is due to mismanagement on the part of the previous company that managed the building [pour lui] at this time,” his wife Revital Bouganim specifies in an email, without providing further details.
In collaboration with Philippe Langlois, Agence QMI
To read the full judgment click here:
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