Water company notified of my BK

22bear

Hi all!

I went BK two weeks ago and so far, so good! As well as receiving my suggested IPA from the OR in the post today, I also got a letter from my water supplier informing me that they had been notified of by BK via a letter from the OR dated the day after my BK and that they were transferring me to a new account and any shortfall from my previous one, they would notify to the OR

The thing is though..I never had a debt with my water provider (or none that I knew of anyway) and therefore did not list them as a creditor on my SOA...so how come the OR would have contacted them when I didn't list them on my SOA as someone I owed money to? Is this normal practice? Would they have notified my telephone provider too in that case?

debt_doctor

Hi,

Rates based water bills become due and payable in full on the 1st April each year, but with an offer to pay by instalments.
So someone goes BR after 1st April in any year, the whole of the remaining years water is a bankruptcy debt, which includes the future instalments.

DD

fermi

22bear wrote: »

Is this normal practice? Would they have notified my telephone provider too in that case?

For some ORs/offices it seems to be. Maybe, maybe not, on the 2nd point.

22bear

Thanks for your replies! I don't understand what you mean by "rates based water bills" though. I set up my water account with Severn Trent in July last year after moving into my flat paying by monthly DD and a few days before my BK date, I checked with them with an up to date meter reading and was told that my account was bang on up to date with nothing owning so that's why I didn't list them on my SOA

I just assumed that the OR wouldn't have any need or reason to contact them so today's letter surprised me. I want to keep paying my water by DD but the letter makes no mention of this but instead says that my old account is now closed and my new one covers water charges from the 3/5/2013 (the day after my BK). It also says that an opening bill will be issued to me in August this year following my next scheduled meter reading.

So I take it I should contact them and set up a new DD, yes?

debt_doctor

If you have a water meter then your water bill is NOT rates based and the information I gave you does not apply.
If your instalments were up to date then I'm not sure I could see any amount of your water costs would be a BR debt. Maybe in your local ORs office they contact the water company in every event, some do.

Either way, I do not see any reason why you cannot set up a new DD going forward by contacting the water company.

DD