Ex-partner didn't pay bills

taconite2

OK, not heard from them since 5th August...

Sent an email saying if i didn't hear from them in 7 days I will assume the issue is closed.

They replied saying they are still investigating and the issue is on hold until they find a solution....

How long can they do this for? They can't keep it on hold for weeks and weeks? Can they?

HappyMJ

taconite2 wrote: »

OK, not heard from them since 5th August...

Sent an email saying if i didn't hear from them in 7 days I will assume the issue is closed.

They replied saying they are still investigating and the issue is on hold until they find a solution....

How long can they do this for? They can't keep it on hold for weeks and weeks? Can they?

They can. It can take months for a case like this to reach a conclusion. Just be patient.

naedanger

taconite2 wrote: »

How long can they do this for? They can't keep it on hold for weeks and weeks? Can they?

Legally, I think they have 6 years (5 in Scotland) to pursue the debt (and longer if you acknowledge the debt exists).

That said it is not in their interests to delay unnecessarily. However I could certainly see them taking many weeks, since even the most routine matters can take weeks to resolve.

taconite2

They are going to be at this for decades.......I never lived there! :-)

naedanger

taconite2 wrote: »

They are going to be at this for decades.......I never lived there! :-)

You could send a written complaint (e.g. by email), marked clearly as an official complaint, to the supplier demanding that they confirm you owe them no money and pay you £x as compensation for the hassle. State that if they don't do this within 8 weeks you will take your complaint to the Ombudsman.

This approach will still take months, but not years.

However I am not certain you actually have a right to take your case to the Ombudsman if the supplier does not help. This is because the supplier was never your supplier. (In practice I would expect the Ombudsman would consider the case since the supplier is maintaining that you were their customer.)

taconite2

Guys, seems my name was on the tenancy agreement. But I didn't sign it.

So I'm looking at a potential fraud case here against my ex, as she has clearly signed this without my permission...

What's my options here? She's in Oz so I can't see the police doing anything. Am I required to pay the bill as per the contract?

Do I have any defence here?

naedanger

taconite2 wrote: »

Guys, seems my name was on the tenancy agreement. But I didn't sign it.

So I'm looking at a potential fraud case here against my ex, as she has clearly signed this without my permission...

What's my options here? She's in Oz so I can't see the police doing anything. Am I required to pay the bill as per the contract?

Are you saying your signature has been forged on the document? If so how convincing is it? (How close is the forgery to your signature as shown on your driving licence, passport etc?) Also you should report the matter to the police. If they think a crime may have been committed then ask for a crime reference number. It may help your case later if you report the matter now.

Do I have any defence here?

If you had no financial responsibility for the property, and did not enter any agreement with the supplier, then you have no liability for the bill. (Note if you had a shared responsibility the supplier can pursue you for the full bill.)

Your supplier needs to prove on the balance of probability that either you had an energy supply agreement with them or you had a financial responsibility for the property.

Provided you can convince a court your signature has been forged then I don't think the tenancy document changes things.

If the supplier's only evidence is based on a forged signature (and assuming you think it is easy to demonstrate it is a forgery) then you should dispute the bill and let the supplier take the case to court.

taconite2

Cheers. I've asked for a copy to see if this is the case....

I spoke to the Police last time but they weren't much help, and told me to tell SSE if they wanted to pursue this.

Laurensalive

This is a lesson for anyone who ends a relationship. I have been through this and know how difficult it is to put this sort of issue first. But it saves trouble long term. Basically I knew I was leaving him, so this gave myself time to get all the paper work together. Bills with my name on it, any other bills with his name on them, just for future reference. Property info, Id etc. Basically as soon as I had walked out the door, the following day I called the companies with my new address. Asking for the power company to send a meter man around to read the meter. Then I made sure that the final bill in my name was sent to myself. The companies will bill the named person on a bill, as it is this person who is legally required to pay this bill. Plus I also informed all other companies and the local authority for council tax for change of address.

He thought I should have been still paying the bills until the divorce came through. As most of the bills were in my name he knew I would be liable for these. He even called me to ask why all these letters were landing on the door mat for money for TV licence etc. At the time I thought the planning went well. Meaning I made sure that I sorted out all these financial matters before he knew I had gone for good.

naedanger

taconite2 wrote: »

Cheers. I've asked for a copy to see if this is the case....

If you have not seen the document are you certain you didn't sign it at some point? It may have slipped your memory.

I spoke to the Police last time but they weren't much help, and told me to tell SSE if they wanted to pursue this.

Wait until you get the agreement before going to the police. If you have clear evidence someone forged your name on a tenancy agreement I would have thought that would constitute identity theft.