Help with gas bill - overcharged and not sure what action to take

a_hayes2010

Hi, I was looking for some help with a payment I am being chased for.

Over a year ago I was living in a shared house with 3 others. The house was a mid terrace with an electric oven, and two boilers one for heating the water and one for the gas. The bill holder was one of my house mates at the time, but I never put my name to or signed up to the gas supply and never took meter readings either.

Since moving out I believed all the bills for the property were payed. Though a few months ago my parents received a letter to their house (my previous address) asking for payment for a gas bill which wasn't paid. I have since ingored it hoping it was a mistake and would go away.

The bill has been forwarded somehow to my new address so I am now worried and wanting to resolve it. The bill itself is only for gas between 29th April and 6th August (despite us all moving out on the 30th of June). The bill states it is for just over 15,000kWh of gas use. This to me seems hugely excessive and incorrect because not only was it for summer months where little heating was used, but we also had a an electric oven. The total amount charged for the bill is roughly £565! Also despite the fact that £450 has been paid I have just been sent a letter demanding £200, in my name alone.

I am also uncertain of the legal side to this. The bill itself was not in my name as I have already mentioned, so is it right the debt has been passed onto me? Am I able to dispute the amount on the bill, some of which has since been paid by my ex housemates.

Any ideas of how I should proceed? I am being faced with a huge bill for gas I can't possibly have used, please help me!

macman

You have no liability to the supplier if the account was not in joint names (are you sure your name was not on it-if so you are jointly and severally liable). Any dispute between you and the account holder is a third party dispute and of no interest to the utility co-they need to pursue the debt from the account holder.
if you think you owe something, speak to your ex-housemates.
Since you didn't bother to take closing readings, disputing the amount billed as excessive is a little tricky.

Premier_2

How did the bill arrive at your parents address if it wasn't addressed to you? :huh:

Ignoring debt issues, whether you agree with the debt or not, is never recommended. They rarely just disappear. Afterall, someone thinks they are owed money and will continue to try and obtain it, as I'm sure you would if you were owed money, unless you can convince them you do not owe the money claimed.

PNPSUKNET

Im going to disagree with the above, if the landlord was to provide tennancys to say that you were liable along with the others even if you name wasnt on the account they could still add it and chase you.

Cardew

PNPSUKNET wrote: »

Im going to disagree with the above, if the landlord was to provide tennancys to say that you were liable along with the others even if you name wasnt on the account they could still add it and chase you.

I think you will find that has now changed, and it is the responsibility of the person named on the bill.

Responsibility for the bill

The person who has to pay any gas or electricity debt is the person who originally asked for it to be supplied. In the past some energy companies have also demanded payment from anyone living at the house when the gas or electricity was being used. Calling them as 'beneficial users'. But several courts have refused to allow companies to pursue this kind of debt now, and if you are in this situation, you may be able to stop them insisting that you have to pay.

For instance(as often happens in student accommodation) someone could move out after a few weeks of a one year lease, and not have been in the house over the period when the debt was accrued - which is normally at the end of the tenancy.

However it won't stop a DCA from 'trying it on' and the danger is that it could affect your credit record.

PNPSUKNET

what people have to look at is whats in the tennancy agreement, it says you agree to pay utilities. I know what your saying, its more of a fairness thing.

davidgmmafan

I too am going with the Tenancy Agreement thing, doens't it say something like the tenant (s) undertake to absolutely indemnify the landlord against all bills for...

If the landlord sent this in after I can't see any problem with the bill being in more than one name. I can't see why else it would've been sent to your address unless one of the other house mates is trying to be clever.