Landlord pays bills but says we are using too much gas and electricity

savingsuperstar

Bit of a tricky situ. All bills are included in our monthly rent.
I live with my bf in the basement flat of a shared house with four other residents.

We're careful about the gas and leccy because the landlord is bf's dad, but upstairs they have the heating and hot water on constantly.
It's an old, badly insulated four-floor house and the bills, particularly gas, are astronomical. £800 gas bill for the last quarter seems very high.

Landlord says this can't continue and wants to put in meters for both gas and leccy. He reckons we should be using £80 gas a month and £40 electricity for the whole house, so he's going to top up the meters by that much and we have to fund the rest. (He's not lowering the rent)

This seems astonishingly low to me. I was told about five years ago to budget five pounds per person per week for each of gas and electricity, and that would mean £130 on each per month, and this was when prices were significantly lower.

I've been looking for somewhere to calculate how much energy use would be reasonable for this number of people in this sort of house if we have the heating and water timed twice a day, but no luck.

So my question is- does anyone have an idea how much the gas bill would be for six people in such a house with the timers on?

Thanks!

spiro

For gas, during the winter quarter you use several times more gas than any other quarter plus we have just come through the coldest winter in 30 years. You have also stated property is large and badly insulated (double glazing?).

Does each 'flat' have its own gas boiler? If so he could buy several gas meters and fit one to each flat, they will cost about £50 each plus fitting. The gas bill could then be divided based on actual useage otherwise you could be the frugal ones whilst the rest sweat in trpoical temperatures and you have to pay part of their.

Any rent with heat & power is going to be an issue unless a maximum amount for heat & power is agreed as part of the tenancy agreement.

savingsuperstar

No double glazing, sash windows which I stuff with knickers to keep out the draughts!

We do have separate gas boilers, so that's definitely an option. I'll suggest that. Bf and I would be happy to cover our own bills if the rent was reduced to reflect this, as we rather love our little flat and would be loathed to move.

spiro

savingsuperstar wrote: »

No double glazing, sash windows which I stuff with knickers to keep out the draughts!

You can buy secondary double glazing which is basically a perspex sheet that fits inside across the whole window and helps cut out draughts. Might want to consider this before next winter.

KimYeovil

Is the landlord resident? If not why are the bills inclusive? Why is the proposal not to simply separate bills?

Ignoring that, you will still be receiving £120 (plus other bills - council tax, water) included in your rent. How much does that rent compare with other places?

I don't understand your statement "I for one cannot afford any bills." If that is true, then go live with your parents or something. Why do you have no income?

When living in shared accommodation it is up to you to negotiate with other tenants to determine levels of heating etcetera. If you not compatible with each other then move out and rent a place by yourself or track down less reptilian flatmates.

How much a four-storey house costs to heat is a very variable length of string. With six people (say four households) anything from £100 to £250 on heating should be enough. But the problem is there is usually someone in and not everyone turns their radiators down when they're out so you can end up with the heating on at least all day if not all night too. This is okay if the house is insulated but not if it is not.

If the landlord is going to install meters it would make sense to install more than one. Also ensure he just installs credit meters - no need for coin or prepayment meters. Fuel bills and debts are tenants' responsibilities - no comeback falls on the landlord.

savingsuperstar

KimYeovil wrote: »

Is the landlord resident? If not why are the bills inclusive? Why is the proposal not to simply separate bills?

Ignoring that, you will still be receiving £120 (plus other bills - council tax, water) included in your rent. How much does that rent compare with other places?

I don't understand your statement "I for one cannot afford any bills." If that is true, then go live with your parents or something. Why do you have no income?

He's not resident, and I'm not sure why he pays the bills. I think he's probably doing it to save us the hassle, he's a nice bloke.

For me personally that's about £50-£70 in bills, which makes my rent, for the quality of the house and the upkeep, a bit above average.

I have an income, I'm working full-time, I mean I can't afford to pay an extra £25 plus in bills every month on top of my £500 rent without sacrificing something else.

espresso

savingsuperstar wrote: »

I mean I can't afford to pay an extra £25 plus in bills every month on top of my £500 rent without sacrificing something else.

Look at this from the landlords point of view. Having meters fitted will actually cost him money but you would then be charged fairly for what you actual use and you would be in control of that. Energy prices have increased massively and the recent token prices drops will make very little difference to the average bill. Unfortunately an old property with poor insulation will use significantly more energy.

bryanb

When you say the LL is going to fit seperate meters, do you mean seperate supplies from the power company or just sub dividing the existing supply and him continuing to pay the total bill?

KimYeovil

Don't forget that with six tenants you are very likely to receive the best deal from having separate suppliers with single fuel tariffs rather than dual fuel tariffs - you may be able to save 20% or 30% or more by simply switching tariffs. Massive savings are available to high users.

spiro

bryanb wrote: »

When you say the LL is going to fit seperate meters, do you mean seperate supplies from the power company or just sub dividing the existing supply and him continuing to pay the total bill?

I suggested that for gas he fit sub meters. He gets and pays bill and bills each tenant based on their share.

savingsuperstar

espresso wrote: »

Look at this from the landlords point of view. Having meters fitted will actually cost him money but you would then be charged fairly for what you actual use and you would be in control of that. Energy prices have increased massively and the recent token prices drops will make very little difference to the average bill. Unfortunately an old property with poor insulation will use significantly more energy.

I'm happy to take on the total bills for what we use because we can be frugal about it, but I think it is fair if he lowers the rent to reflect that he will no longer be contributing.