How long would this take?

ANGLICANPAT

The relative who lived in and paid the G&E bills in a property I own, has died. Realistically the property is going to be empty for a few months but Ill be working on it here and there , so would need a power connection. EDF cant transfer the 3yr till Feb '14 fixed rate contract my relative had with them in her name apparently , so they want to close the account and open a new one for me, at a higher rate, and it has standing charges.

So, Im moving to Ebico. Rather than have another 5 or 6 weeks with EDF on this new rate whilst I ask them to transfer to Ebico, I was wondering whether I can in the case of a death, just ask them to cancel the G&E with immediate effect and get a final bill, and then ring Ebico myself and ask them to start G& E asap to the property. I can afford to have no power there for a week or two.

a)should I be able to cancel with EDF with immediate effect (they are saying I cant, I would need a solicitors letter stating relative had died and that I had permission to close account--despite I told them I was executor and not using a solicitor ) and
b) Can you get a new company to supply you straight away or would it still take 5 weeks +?

Grateful for any advice. Thanks

keith1950

The new tenant/householder has to sign up with the existing supplier and then switch.

You cannot switch if you have nothing to switch from.......if that makes sense !

undaunted

I think they are being deliberately obstructive here personally.

I take it you have a death certificate - therefore you don't need a solicitor to prove she is dead or pay for any energy used since the last bill.

You don't have any contract with them - as they are basically keen to point out when to their advantage so I fail to see how they can force you to use their supply.

Whether you can then get Ebico moving quicker than usual to switch the supply to them is another matter though. Have you approached them?

Wywth

ANGLICANPAT wrote: »

The relative who lived in and paid the G&E bills in a property I own, has died. Realistically the property is going to be empty for a few months but Ill be working on it here and there , so would need a power connection. EDF cant transfer the 3yr till Feb '14 fixed rate contract my relative had with them in her name apparently , so they want to close the account and open a new one for me, at a higher rate, and it has standing charges.

So, Im moving to Ebico. Rather than have another 5 or 6 weeks with EDF on this new rate whilst I ask them to transfer to Ebico, I was wondering whether I can in the case of a death, just ask them to cancel the G&E with immediate effect and get a final bill, and then ring Ebico myself and ask them to start G& E asap to the property. I can afford to have no power there for a week or two.

a)should I be able to cancel with EDF with immediate effect (they are saying I cant, I would need a solicitors letter stating relative had died and that I had permission to close account--despite I told them I was executor and not using a solicitor ) and
b) Can you get a new company to supply you straight away or would it still take 5 weeks +?

Grateful for any advice. Thanks

EDF are essentially entirely correct (apart from needing a solicitors letter)

As the account holder is now deceased, the account should be closed and transferred to you (as there are no tenants). I'm surprised they didn't simply do that whilst you were on the phone. They may need to see some form of proof of death. If so, a certified copy of the death certificate will surfice ... a letter from a solicitor is not required.

You cannot take over the tariff the deceased had; you need to have a new account based on one of the currently available tariffs.

Once in your name, you are free to switch supplier if you wish. Switches typically take 4-6 weeks from application to actually occur.

As executor, you will be responsible for settling the final bill for the deceased using the deceased's estate. You will also be personally liable for the final bill you will then later receive if you switch supplier.

Do not consider terminating the supplies entirely as the costs involved in termination/reconnection would be horendous. (and you'll probably need the supplies, even in minute amounts, for periods you are keeping an eye on the property e.g. a light on if checking late in the evening, ability to make a cuppa, power to keep the garden tidy, etc and if the property remains empty for a few months, then perhaps low level heating and possibly power an alarm system)

DirectDebacle

Awhile back I was one of two executors of a relatives estate. The property was unoccupied and amelioration work was being done prior to sale.

We set up an Executors account at the deceased bank and money from the deceased account was transferred to this and we had authority over it.

All utilitiy companies, gas, elec, water, phone etc were notified of the death and were supplied with certified copies of the death cert. The deceased utility accounts were closed and new ones opened as executor accounts. Bills were sent to the executors. These were paid out of the bank executors account. After probate had been granted and the property sold final accounts were settled in the same way.

You may find that what saves you some real money is Council Tax. In our area the council waived council tax for a max of 6 months as the property was unoccupied. After 6 months I think it was charged at 50% of full rate. The estate was settled within 6 months and several hundred pounds in council tax were saved. Utility bill were peanuts as no-one lived there and usage was at a bare minimum.

I don't see much difference in that you are the owner. You are not the occupier from what I understand so the executors will have to manage the utilities and property until such time as it is re-occupied.

HTH

Having re-read the above maybe it does make a difference that you are the owner. Still worth enquiring re the Council Tax aspect.

Wywth

DirectDebacle wrote: »

Awhile back I was one of two executors of a relatives estate. The property was unoccupied and amelioration work was being done prior to sale.

We set up an Executors account at the deceased bank and money from the deceased account was transferred to this and we had authority over it.

All utilitiy companies, gas, elec, water, phone etc were notified of the death and were supplied with certified copies of the death cert. The deceased utility accounts were closed and new ones opened as executor accounts. Bills were sent to the executors. These were paid out of the bank executors account. After probate had been granted and the property sold final accounts were settled in the same way.

My personal view is that it is premature to start switching utilities.

You may find that what saves you some real money is Council Tax. In our area the council waived council tax for a max of 6 months as the property was unoccupied. After 6 months I think it was charged at 50% of full rate. The estate was settled within 6 months and several hundred pounds in council tax were saved. Utility bill were peanuts as no-one lived there and usage was at a bare minimum.

I don't see much difference in that you are the owner. You are not the occupier from what I understand so the executors will have to manage the utilities and property until such time as it is re-occupied.

HTH

The difference is that in your case the property was owned by the deceased. Until such times as the property was disposed of by the executors, then the executors would indeed need to settle bils arising therefrom (from the estate of the deceased)

In the OP's case, the property was only rented; the OP being the landlord.
Upon death of the tenant, then the tenancy agreement is considered terminated. As the property will now be unoccupied for a period of time, responsibility lies with the owner/LL i.e. the OP

ANGLICANPAT

Thanks everyone. Will accept the EDF new tarrif , and then swap straight away to Ebico Can I do that the day after accepting EDF or is there a minimum time before I can? -suppose they'll soon tell me.
Already tried the council tax thing, but everything changed in April , so as owner, I dont qualify. Brilliant, it went from paying 75% when my relative was there using services, to 100% now no-one is there !

keith1950

Will accept the EDF new tarrif , and then swap straight away to Ebico Can I do that the day after accepting EDF or is there a minimum time before I can? -suppose they'll soon tell me.

Hi you can start a switch as soon as you have registered for the EDF tariff .

undaunted

Whilst it may be common practice on what basis does anyone conclude you must register with EDF tarrifs or wait several weeks?

The fact is the contracted party is dead. If the outstanding bill is paid (or there is no estate) what basis of objection could there then be here if Ebico were to contact EDF & say they were taking over supply & could do so immediately? (the poster will not of course have an unpaid bill of 28 days plus, nor indeed will the last occupier have any (pursuable) outstanding bill)

keith1950

Hi, it doesn't work like that, to switch you must have a supplier ( at that house ) to switch from.

You give your opening meter readings and the previous occupants account is then finalised.

It takes 3-5 weeks to switch.

what basis of objection could there then be here if Ebico were to contact EDF & say they were taking over supply & could do so immediately? (

If you have experience that your suggestion is possible please post evidence to back it up.

ANGLICANPAT

That was the approach I was wondering about , but as you say, it seems its more normal to do it the way that has been mentioned on here. What I will do is ring Ebico and ask them their stance on this. Is there a 'body' I can check with to see if EDF is telling me porkies re solicitor or if it insists I cant just drop them and go with Ebico, if Ebico says I can ?
The account of the deceased, is well in credit .