The woman claimed she missed her flight because her partner of six-and-a-half-years didn't drive her as she had asked.
He was also supposed to be staying in her house and looking after her dogs while she went away to a concert with friends.
She had asked him the day before to take her to the airport between 10am and 10.15am the next day in a message.
But he didn't so she missed the flight, had to pay for an airport shuttle and pay for kennels for the animals.
New Zealand's Disputes Tribunal, which looks at claims up to $27,000 ($NZ30,000) looked at if the boyfriend, known only as HG, had entered a contract with the woman, called CL.
The claimant also said she had paid for ferry tickets for him for a holiday to visit her sons in December 2023.
She said he had paid her for his ticket.
"Partners, friends and colleagues make social arrangements, but it is unlikely they can be legally enforced unless the parties perform some act that demonstrates an intention that they will be bound by their promises," tribunal referee Krysia Cowie wrote in the decision document.
"When friends fail to keep their promises, the other person may suffer a financial consequence but it may be that they cannot be compensated for that loss."
The referee found "the nature of the promises were exchanged as a normal give and take in an intimate relationship" and fell short of being a contract.
"There needs to be an intention to create a legally binding relationship," Cowie said.
The tribunal noted the couple had been in a relationship for six-and-a-half years "until this dispute arose".
