Upstairs & Downstairs HDB Neighbours Sue Each Other For Harassment & Trespassing
A smoking neighbour gained the ire of the couple who lived directly above them. In retaliation, the couple began throwing rubbish down onto the smoker’s flat.
Both neighbours ended up suing each other in court over their respective nuisances.
On Thursday (3 Aug), the court awarded the smoker S$17,000 in damages while dismissing the claims of the littering couple.
HDB neighbours dispute over cigarette smoke & harassment
Ms Pua Siew Yok, the smoker, lived on the 15th floor of an undisclosed HDB block in the northeastern region of Singapore.
According to Channel NewsAsia (CNA), Ms Pua would smoke on her balcony with her sliding door closed to prevent the fumes from entering her home.
The smoke apparently drifted to the flat above Ms Pua’s, occupied by a couple — Mr Ng Kok Hwee and Mdm Chua Kim Choo — who began acts of retaliation.
Ms Pua claimed that the couple threw liquids, wet food, and baked watermelon seeds on her air-con ledge and kitchen window.
Source: Wikimedia Commons, for illustration purposes only
The couple denied the allegations, suggesting that another resident staying higher up could’ve been the culprit.
Neighbour presents CCTV footage of alleged acts
To prove her allegations, Ms Pua showed footage captured by a CCTV installed in her unit.
Some of these reportedly showed Mdm Chua dropping an egg onto Ms Pua’s air-con ledge, as well as shaking a mop filled with melon seeds to scatter them onto Ms Pua’s property.
Ms Pua also accused her upstairs neighbours of hanging their laundry in ways that “blocked” her unit.
Mdm Chua and Mr Ng argued that they used the sheets to block Ms Pua’s CCTV cameras as they were uncomfortable with the surveillance camera.
Ms Pua eventually sued the couple for trespassing and private nuisance. Mdm Chua and Mr Ng countersued her for trespassing and private nuisance with her smoking.
Judge Jonathan Ng reviewed the evidence and agreed to grant Ms Pua nominal damages of S$500 and aggravated damages of $8,000. In addition, the judge gave an injunction to prevent Mdm Chua from littering on her property.
Neighbours blame alleged noises on HDB renovation
Ms Pua also provided 26 videos recording noises allegedly from the floor above. She claimed that the noises were caused by Mdm Chua dragging furniture across the floor.
The couple denied the claims, arguing that the noises could be from renovations in other flats, reports CNA.
However, Judge Ng discovered that the recordings did not line up with the HDB notices of renovations and found that Mdm Chua was changing her story.
On the other hand, Judge Ng stated that Ms Pua failed to provide evidence of damage she suffered as a result of the noise.
In the end, he awarded Ms Pua nominal damages of $500 and aggravated damages of $8,000 for the noise.
Ms Pua was awarded a total of $17,000 in damages. She had initially sought $60,000 in damages.
Judge dismisses claims over smoking
Judge Ng also dismissed the couple’s trespassing claim over Ms Pua’s smoking.
Mdm Chua and Mr Ng claimed that Mdm Chua’s asthma was aggravated by Ms Pua and her male companion smoking at least twice a day.
However, Judge Ng said that there was no evidence to prove that smoking worsened Mdm Chua’s condition as well as how long Ms Pua smoked for each session.
Thus, Judge Ng did not find the smoking to be a “substantial interference” and dismissed the couple’s private nuisance counterclaim.
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