Houseshare, how to split the bills?

Chris842

Hi all,
Apologies if this is in the wrong forum, I wasn’t sure where to put it. I’d like your opinion on the following problem of how to split up a bill. I’ll be showing this thread to the housemates after I’ve had some replies.

I live in a houseshare, there are 6 of us in total, in London, because I had to move last year from Manchester for work. I moved in December 1st because I had the housemates from hell in my first house – lots of arguing. I also think I got ripped off and I want to be careful to avoid that again.

My girlfriend, from Manchester, visits every two weeks on weekends and stays Friday and Saturday night, so that’s about 4 nights a month. The other two weeks, I go to her house. When I viewed the house, I asked about this and they were fine with it. Now they are making life difficult for me. Weeks ago, they called me up for a meeting and said my girlfriend should pay for the bills. I didn’t agree, I felt what I was saying went ignored. Now the electric/bill has come…

Its £572.88 for 20th November – 22nd February. That’s 95 days. I’ve only been there 85 days. They have broken it down like this:
Housemate 1 - £91
Housemate 2 - £91
Housemate 3 - £91
Housemate 4 - £91
Housemate 5 - £103 (his girlfriend moved in permanently a few weeks ago).
Me - £105

Split equally, its £95 each. I only think I should pay 85 days though, so £572.88 / 95 (days) / 6 (people) * 85 (days) = £85.

There was another bill I paid from November 1st - I didn’t put up much of a fight because it was only a different of about £2 and I got told that would be the last time I’d have to pay for a time I wasn’t there.

My argument: I think it is ridiculous to charge guests for electric, it just isn’t the “done” thing. If they insisted on doing so though, I have another argument: I’m away at my girlfriend’s house for 4 days a month too. If it matters that an extra person is there for 4 days, it also matters if I’m away for 4 days (I said this at the meeting, he just said “well everyone takes holidays” and everyone walked away at that). I actually think we use less than everyone else because two weekends, nothing at all is used. The other two weekends, we share things (we are under the same lights, we cook together, etc.).

The bill only came yesterday, the money isn’t due for 10 days, but this morning I found a sign on the oven: “Use of this oven is forbidden until further notice”. Signed by all but one of the housemates (but in the same handwriting). I’m now dreading going home, a feeling no one should have, they have no right to stop me using it surely? Weeks ago, I was shouted at because he thought I’d used his tea towel. I think they are just petty and trying to make my life difficult / rip me off but its making life hell and very uncomfortable!

macman

Your issue isn't how to divide the utility bills. Your issue is incompatibility with your housemates. The billing dispute is just a symptom.
It's impossible to work out exactly how many kWh each tenant used, so the only rational way out is to split it into equal shares.
Time to look for a new place...
PS: and no, unlesss it's written otherwise into your tenancy agreement, you can use the oven as and when you like, not at the whim of some control freak.

grahamc2003

sounds like a really crap flat atmosphere. I'd move out asap, but in the meantime, the bill should be divided by the number of personnights, and each pays for the number of person night they've used.

So there have been 5 people for 95 nights, making 475 personnights, you for 85 nights, making 85 personnights, your girlfriend for 12 nights (guess), making 12 person nights, the other blokes girfriend for 30 nights (guess) making 30 person nights. Get the total personnights, 475+85+12+30, which is 602 person nights, so 1 personnight costs £572.88/602 = 95p/personnight.

So the 4 straightforward ones pay £90.40 each, you pay £80.88 for yourself plus £11.42 for your girlfriend, the other bloke pays £90.40 for himself plus £28.55 for his girlfriend.

But it's a real shame if it comes to splitting bills like that imv.

Chris842

Thanks for your reply. I wouldn't say anyone really gets along with each other, people hardly talk to each other.

I'm moving out to move back to Manchester at the end of April, my work commitment in London ends then

Idiophreak

Madness.

If you start counting the number of nights you've been there, where does it stop? Are you going to count how many showers each of you have? How many times you each boil the kettle? Oh, you need to pay an extra £1 electricity because you used the oven for your baked potatoes! It's just nonsense.

Split the bill in equal shares amongst the 5 of you (or 6 of you as it is now) and that's that.

Jennifer_Jane

Over many decades I've lived in house shares, whether it be like yours in London with many people, or having lodgers in my own. We had all sorts of people staying, moving in/out etc. Some people will have cooked meals, and some ready meals; some bath twice a day, and some showers once a day, etc.

You should, in my opinion split evenly between the SIX residents, so it's your flatmates and the permanent girlfriend.

You pay for 85 days not 95.

Personally, I agree with the other comments that this is not a convivial place to be, but it's how I understand these things work in London, with people hardly seeing each other.

As it happens your girlfriend's being there for 2 days on a regular, fortnightly, basis is, anyway, counter-balanced by your being away for the same amount of time. To me, this is irrelevant, however, everyone would be entitled to have someone extra stay occasionally.

Yes, you are paying to use the facility of the oven, so ignore the nasty, mean-spirited note. No-one can deny you the right to use the facilities. God, how stupid these people are!

The spirit of sharing should be to split things equally. After all, is the person with the permanent girlfriend paying extra rent - I would have found the extra person using hot water and having more things about, causing extra housework etc, would be more unacceptable than the energy splits.

I hope you can bear to stay there for two more months. It's unbearable to share with people who are so nasty, mean-spirited, back-stabbing, and unfair.

Nada666

Your flatmates are idiots. Four of you should pay the same. The fifth - well, it's open to discussion - the couple can be counted as between one-and-a-quarter to one-and-a-half (certainly not as 'two' as Idiophreak suggests). So bills should be divided by 5.25 or 5.5.

What is wrong with the other three? Do they really have no friends or visitors?

Ignore the bitter virgins and continue to only pay the same as the other three. And continue to make full use of your home.

Idiophreak

Nada666 wrote: »

The fifth - well, it's open to discussion - the couple can be counted as between one-and-a-quarter to one-and-a-half (certainly not as 'two' as Idiophreak suggests).

Eh? Take TV - You think that 2 people watch about 1.25 times as much as a single person? Nope, so I guess that's 'two', then. You think that two people shower or flush the toilet about 1.25 times as much as a single person? Nope, so there's another 'two' for water...Fine, gas and electric, they may not use exactly double -they may cook together, they only heat one room...but then the two of them are (presumably) only paying one lot of rent - so getting the roof over their heads, "access" to the living spaces etc for half as much as everyone else...So I'd have thought the intelligent thing to do, to keep everyone on side, is just to split the bill evenly still. (and that's certainly what's happened when I've lived with couples in the past)

macman

Chris842 wrote: »

Thanks for your reply. I wouldn't say anyone really gets along with each other, people hardly talk to each other.

I'm moving out to move back to Manchester at the end of April, my work commitment in London ends then

So is it really worth arguing over the few pounds difference in the meantime? Just carry on using the oven until you leave.
No one should be getting 'credits' because the are away for one or two nights, or a week-that's their choice.

Fire_Fox

You don't necessarily use much less as a couple, lighting and media gadgets use little energy, it's heating and hot water that are the biggest energy guzzlers. Presumably your girlfriend showers and the heating in the house is on regardless of your presence. Ditto there are standing charges due whether or not you are there. It may not be the norm to charge for overnight guests but I can assure you it is done, and if everyone else in the house but you thinks this is reasonable you are outvoted, that is democracy.

Just pay up, assuming the bill is based on actual incoming and outgoing meter readings. Otherwise you risk spiteful people doing more than just putting peurile notes on the oven. Fancy having your food spat in, toothbrush used in the toilet, someone anonymously reporting you for not having a TV licence for your room? Sadly it happens.

Make sure YOU read the meters on your last day and ring them through to the suppliers or log with the letting agent/ landlord, pay what you owe by a trackable method and YOU take your name off every last bill.

Chris842

About the bills... we are going to have to all get together (including my girlfriend because I want her there, I said) and talk it out.

As for the oven... I came today, with food I'd just bought that needed the oven, and it wouldn't turn on. I knocked on the guy's room, asked how to get it on, he refused to tell me! At this I lost my temper, there was a very heated argument and I'm still shook up from it now.

I went back down and he followed. I figured it out. There's an on/off switch we never use because its always on. He had turned it off and hidden it with duct tape. He's then threatening, between him and the landlord, to have the contract rewritten without my name on it and have me thrown out of the house. I'm going to get on the phone to my landlord tomorrow to give my side of the story, and complain about him for trying to stop me using the oven.

My girlfriend got onto the Citizens Advice Bureau website for me and she said the landlord can indeed rewrite the contract without me if he wants to! Which doesn't seem fair to me. Would I lose my deposit too?