Joint gas supply in rented apartment

LittleYoda

Hello people,

I am looking at renting an aparment which is over a commercial office. The office is currently empty, but with the landlord currently looking for a tenant.

My concern is with the utilities.

The electric is on a separate meter - no problem here

The water is billed on a standing charge - i.e. no water mater. Landlord suggests a 75/25 split whilst the office is empty and 50/50 when let.

The area of most concern is the gas. This is on a joint supply with the downstairs office.

The landlord has suggested a split of 75/25 weighted to my upstairs apartment whilst the commercial property downstairs is empty. Then a 50/50 split when the premises are occupied.

I would much prefer my supply to be on a separate meter for the sake of good order, and to ensure that all is clear about who is liable for what, and in the main to ensure i am not overpaying.

I will put this to the landlord - does anyone know if this would be possible - to put upstairs and downstairs of a building on separate meters.

I have no idea what type of business could end up below me, and I do not want to be paying 50% of what ever bills they might accrue. Their use could far outweigh my own.

Additionally, say i am abroad for say 3/4 weeks I would have negligible gas and yet still be liable for 50% of the bill.

A further point would be if the tenant downstairs defaulted - there is a strong possibility I would be liable for their share of the bill, as my name would be on the bill next to theirs. I would be at risk of getting a bad credit record should I not pay the whole bil - jointly and severally liable and all that.

Can anyone offer any suggestions on how to get round this? The only solution I can see is separate meters. Or am i just being overly concerned?

How do you forsee the actual practicalites working - would both parties be named on the bill?

I intend to discuss with landlord, just thought I would put some feelers out first.

Thanks for any suggestions.

LittleYoda

Premier_2

You are wise to be cautious!

If the meter is shared with a commercial business, then all the supply will probably be supplied at a commercial rate. Don't agree to be put on the bill - you will legally be responsible for all of it (at least to the supplier) irrespective of whether anyone else is on the bill. If accepting the arrangement as proposed is the only solution, then ensure the LL is the one on the bill and you pay him the share agreed.

The best solution would definitely be to have your own metered supply - then you can be on a domestic tariff and be responsible for your own bill. But the LL may face a hefty charge to get this new supply arranged.

An alternative may be for the LL to arrange his own meters to be installed after the main meter to measure each property's consumption and split the charge of his bill pro-rata. But if the commercial property never uses any consumption (e.g. is not let) you may end up having to pay the full bill

spiro

I dont know much about it but in gas you can have the concept of prime and sub meters were they deduct the consumption on the sub meter from the prime meter to determine what gas has been used by the prime. Ask the landlord about contacting the supplier to see if such an arrangement is possible. Then there is no need for estimates. If you follow this link http://www.plymouth.ac.uk/files/extranet/docs/ACC/Landlords%20Advice%20-%20Tenancy%20Issues.pdf you will see it says that the tenant is only required to pay for what he uses. If you dont have a meter of your own the landlord can't prove you have used anything and therefore he would have trouble enforcing any payment. I would suggest you dont get into the suituation where you have a joint bill with the business premises especially as they have to pay a higher rate of VAT.