Heating bills included - who decides when to heat

kiddy_guy

Here's an interesting one.

Colleague of mine rents a room with included heating bills. Landord does not live in property but has installed remote App controls so he can set the house temperature using his phone.

Subsequently house is often freezing and the tenants can't control temperature at all.

Now given electricity is also included within bills, I've told me colleague to get an electric heater; this will cost the LL a fortune even though he's trying to be clever.

I've told her to move but surely can't be legal?

getmore4less

Put the thermostat in the fridge.

st999

Put the thermostat in the fridge.

Won't work as the fridge will shield the thermostat as I found out when I put a remote temperature sensor in my fridge to check the temperature.

missbiggles1

What hours and temperature is the heating set for?

G_M

For the legality, please quote the exact wording in the contract regarding the heating. Is there, for example, a 'fair usage' clause and what does it say?

But the suggestions above seem sensible if heating is included.

This seems to be an increasingly popular way for some LLs to manage utility inclusive rentals - it's come up before here.

MissTasmanian

Back when my partner and I were slumming it whilst trying to save to get on the property ladder we'd a really stingy landlord. We paid for the utility bills but he put the radiators on a trimmer that couldn't be altered so naturally he set it so that it was freezing for all but ten minutes in the morning and evening. Always meant to look into the legality of it because it was too cold to do anything, but then I suppose it did encourage us to spend more time at work!

FBaby

I really don't understand why any tenant or landlord would go for this set up considering how different people's habits to heating are. When I first moved with my partner, I felt cold all the time as he only had the heating on for a couple of hours mornings and evenings at a low set up and that includes week-ends, and not before end of October.

However, I got used to it and now this is perfect for me. I find that I often feel much too hot when I go visit friends and hate the feeling of the heat which I find suffocating.

In this set-up, I would most likely have the heating on much lower than most people would want it, but then I would not be happy to pay a lot more for my tenants than I do for myself.

Mojisola

kiddy_guy wrote: »

Colleague of mine rents a room with included heating bills.

Landord does not live in property but has installed remote App controls so he can set the house temperature using his phone.

FBaby wrote: »

In this set-up, I would most likely have the heating on much lower than most people would want it, but then I would not be happy to pay a lot more for my tenants than I do for myself.

If that's the way the LL is thinking, then the heating bills shouldn't be included in the rent - it should be down to the tenants to choose how warm the house is and how much to spend on the bills.

Arleen

No matter what contract says about heating the place must be habitable. Otherwise, the landlord may be in breach of his side of the contract. So I would start by notifying landlord about this problem, either via email or recorded phonecall, so you have a record of it.

And as said before, to know who controls the temperature you will need to check your contract. If it is ambiguous or doesn't say, it's fair to assume that the one renting it should have control over it, so demand that from LL.

FBaby

If that's the way the LL is thinking, then the heating bills shouldn't be included in the rent - it should be down to the tenants to choose how warm the house is and how much to spend on the bills.

That was my point, don't understand why anyone would agree to such an arrangement.

[Deleted User]

Perhaps the LL has had tenants who run up massive utility bills then don't pay them off before leaving? I would never rent a place where the LL had control of heating though.

Surely just as easy to get pre-paid meters installed in if they are that worried.