Former housemates must pay for causing ‘floor to ceiling’ drywall damage: B.C. tribunal

This undated stock image shows damage to drywall. (Credit: Shutterstock)

Two people who admitted to kicking and punching holes in the walls of a home they were renting failed to convince a B.C. tribunal they should not be held fully responsible for the cost of repairs.

Bianca Rose Marina filed a claim with the Civil Resolution Tribunal, saying she paid $1,400 to repair the damage her former housemates – Josh Cooper and Lucas Callwood – did to the drywall in the home they shared in 2023.

Tribunal member Peter Nyhuus described the damage in his decision on the dispute, which was posted online last week.

“Mrs. Marina provided photos of the holes in the walls. I find the walls appear to be damaged in a way that is consistent with punching and kicking. Two of the holes stretch from the floor to ceiling,” he wrote.

Marina told the tribunal she was sent a Snapchat video of Cooper and Callwood damaging the walls before they moved out. The video expired and was not submitted to the tribunal as evidence. However, another resident of the shared home – referred to only as T.P. –submitted a signed statement describing what they saw.

“TP says the videos showed the respondents kicking and punching holes in the walls and using other objects to destroy the home. TP says the respondents were laughing while doing so,” the decision said.

Cooper and Callwood did not deny damaging the walls. They did, however, tell the tribunal “other people were involved” and that the amount being claimed for repairs was “too high.”

However, the pair did not submit evidence showing anyone else was involved and Marina submitted an invoice showing she paid $1,400 for repairs.

“Given the extensive damage to the walls, I find this expense was reasonable and that the respondents must reimburse her for it,” Nyhuus wrote.

Since moving out, Callwood paid Marina $50 – an amount Nyhuus credited toward the cost of repairs. In total, the pair of former housemates were ordered to pay Marina $1,350 for drywall repairs and $125 in tribunal fees.

They were found “jointly and severally liable” meaning Marina will be able to collect the entirety of the damages from either one of them.