This could be in the wrong sub-cat

makeitstop

Hello all.

Could I just ask for your feelings and views towards this please.?

Person executing a will sells house as a part of an estate of a deceased relative.

Without going into the minute details, what are the views if....

New owners (via estate agent) are asked for meter readings, which are duly provided. Problem is, it's known for a 100% certainty by the seller to be incorrect / false.

The buyer knows the situation regarding the seller being executor of a late relative's will, that the seller lives an hour and a half drive away, has the rest of the issues around the estate to deal with, as well as whatever else going on in their own lives.

Would you think it was an error, or would you feel the buyers are trying it on and attempting to get over £900 of free utilities.?

Any views welcome, or questions too.

Guest101

makeitstop wrote: »

Hello all.

Could I just ask for your feelings and views towards this please.?

Person executing a will sells house as a part of an estate of a deceased relative.

Without going into the minute details, what are the views if....

New owners (via estate agent) are asked for meter readings, which are duly provided. Problem is, it's known for a 100% certainty by the seller to be incorrect / false.

The buyer knows the situation regarding the seller being executor of a late relative's will, that the seller lives an hour and a half drive away, has the rest of the issues around the estate to deal with, as well as whatever else going on in their own lives.

Would you think it was an error, or would you feel the buyers are trying it on and attempting to get over £900 of free utilities.?

Any views welcome, or questions too.

How are they getting utilities for free? Utility contracts are with the person not the property.

They could just as easily say 'Sod off'

eddddy

I guess you just ask them to re-check the readings as they don't seem to tally with your records.

If you like, you could ask them to email photos of meter dials as well.

nobblyned

makeitstop wrote: »

Hello all.

Could I just ask for your feelings and views towards this please.?

Person executing a will sells house as a part of an estate of a deceased relative.

Without going into the minute details, what are the views if....

New owners (via estate agent) are asked for meter readings, which are duly provided. Problem is, it's known for a 100% certainty by the seller to be incorrect / false.

The buyer knows the situation regarding the seller being executor of a late relative's will, that the seller lives an hour and a half drive away, has the rest of the issues around the estate to deal with, as well as whatever else going on in their own lives.

Would you think it was an error, or would you feel the buyers are trying it on and attempting to get over £900 of free utilities.?

Any views welcome, or questions too.

What do meter readings have to do with the estate agent? Vendor provides meter readings to the utility company at the point of sale. If you are too far away to take readings, you should have got your agent to take photographic evidence at point of completion. What exactly is the issue? Who is ripping off whom?

eddddy

nobblyned wrote: »

...
What exactly is the issue? Who is ripping off whom?

I imagine the accusation is that the buyer is providing incorrect 'opening readings' to the utility companies, so that the seller has to pay £900 too much in charges, and the buyer has to pay £900 too little.

(If the buyer is doing it intentionally, it would be fraud.)

davidmcn

As above, seller can query the figures with the buyers (I'd be inclined to think it probably is a misreading). Presumably the executors can get hold of actual previous readings and can work out from that what the likely readings ought to be.

Lord_Baltimore

I'd contact the new owners direct and tell them you've accidentally lost their readings but add that you have found readings you know to be correct. Give them your figures and ask them to confirm the readings.

They may back down but if they stick with their readings, you may be stuffed.

fishpond

"the executor lives an hour and a half drive away"
So!
The executor can claim reasonable expenses from the estate!

The executor travels to the property, takes the readings and photographs meter readings, informs utility companies of readings, explaining they will be paid when estate is at least part settled and money is available.

Do not rely on someone else.

The executor of the will has a duty to the beneficiaries of the estate to look after the deceased estate including money.
Being an executor of a will carries far more responsibility than a lot of people are aware of, it basically means the executor has to put their own lives on hold. If they cannot act in the correct manner they should have passed the job to someone else/solicitor.
Simples

DRP

makeitstop wrote: »

Hello all.

Could I just ask for your feelings and views towards this please.?

Person executing a will sells house as a part of an estate of a deceased relative.

Without going into the minute details, what are the views if....

New owners (via estate agent) are asked for meter readings, which are duly provided. Problem is, it's known for a 100% certainty by the seller to be incorrect / false.

"100% certain" ?

why hasn't the seller supplied readings to the utilities co?

And an hour and a half away isn't exactly the end of the world in order to sort something like this out..

makeitstop

eddddy wrote: »

I imagine the accusation is that the buyer is providing incorrect 'opening readings' to the utility companies, so that the seller has to pay £900 too much in charges, and the buyer has to pay £900 too little.

(If the buyer is doing it intentionally, it would be fraud.)

Apologies to all who have responded to this thread, it was late, I have flu, and was in bed by the time any replies came back on this.

Anyhow, yes, in short, the above nails it.

I "know" exactly what the gas reading actually is now, as the agent working on my behalf for the sale went back to the property (which is empty and in need of major refubishment) to read it himself. It was exactly as it was back in July last year, and was certainly nowhere near the figure estimated by the supplier up to December, and less than half what the new owner stated it was to my estate agent when asked.

The electricity reading is less dramatic, but, in an empty property, with absolutely no electrical equipment to consume power, I am a little surprised at how there can be a reading of more than 600 units consumed from July to December 2014, which were the dates from when the meters were last actually read / provided, to an estimated reading at the end of the year.

My relative was dead in early May and the property was empty and totally cleared of any consuming device by the date the last "actual" reading was provided (July).

I fully understand this is something I should have remembered to get done late in the year, knowing the completion of sale was imminent, but it slipped my mind foolishly. That may be an oversight on my part, but surely it's not too much to ask for people to be truthful and accurate in providing a simple set of readings in an empty house. I'd bet it would be right if it was their money they stood to loose by sending incorrect readings.

makeitstop

fishpond wrote: »

"the executor lives an hour and a half drive away"
So!
The executor can claim reasonable expenses from the estate!

The executor travels to the property, takes the readings and photographs meter readings, informs utility companies of readings, explaining they will be paid when estate is at least part settled and money is available.

Do not rely on someone else.

The executor of the will has a duty to the beneficiaries of the estate to look after the deceased estate including money.
Being an executor of a will carries far more responsibility than a lot of people are aware of, it basically means the executor has to put their own lives on hold. If they cannot act in the correct manner they should have passed the job to someone else/solicitor.
Simples

Yes all correct and of course it is possible to drive to the property in order to take readings, but, that's not entirely practical when I can ask the agent to do that who is only a mile and a half up the road.

Also, yes I agree, being an executor does come with responsibilities, but, it doesn't mean having to put your life on hold. It can, and has been managed just fine. The oversight with getting final readings is my fault yes, but these will be final readings in a house which will have consumed nothing in reality over a six month period since the last "actual" readings "were" provided. I had personally turned the water and gas supply off, and the people who were employed to clear and clean the property turned off the electricity supply at the mains when they left.

Finally, I agree that anyone who cannot act in the correct manner should give the job to someone else, but that's not exactly the issue here is it.