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Energy bill addressed to the occupier
Options
So a bit of a long story but I’m look for advice about what I should do about a bill addressed to the occupier.
I moved into a rented property in October and the estate agents who manage the property told us that they would deal with changing the bills such as council tax, water and gas & electric into our names for us, and then it would be up to us to switch providers if we wanted to.
So after a few weeks we received letters about council tax and water but didn’t get one from an energy provider. We have it a bit longer and then decided to phone up the current provider, who then said that they were never informed of anyone taking over the property. He then tried to sign me up for a plan which I declined because I wanted to see what the best deals I could get else where were.
I switched provider and then waited for a final bill. It is now February and I finally get a final bill from the previous provider addressed to the occupier, saying that we owe them £55 which is all standing charges going back to August. But it also says we haven’t used any energy from the reading they have been given. So I am assuming the previous tenants didn’t give them a final reading.
Anyway my other half says to ignore it because it is addressed to the occupier and so they can’t pursue us for the money, because you can’t take an unnamed person to court, and with it being a low amount they probably wouldn’t bother. I’m not sure if I’m happy to do this though.
I see it as I have several options but I’m unsure which would be the best to take.
1.) we ignore it, until we receive something with our names on it, but by then there may be extra charges for default payments.
2.) I just pay the bill it is only £55 after all, however they would then have my details if they were to back charge any energy.
3.) I phone them up and say that we are only liable from October when we moved in and that the charges between August and then are not ours. But again they then have my details, and may ask what the meter reading was when we moved in and then get a bigger bill.
Has anyone else been in this sort of position. I am perhaps a bit naive as this is my first home, but I didn’t know about standing charges, and seeing as I never signed a contract and from the energy company’s point we have not used any energy have I entered a deemed contract? Also because the estate agents failed to do as they said they would do I have any defence in that? I don’t mind paying the bill as it is not a lot but don’t then want any backlash with extra bills being sent afterwards.
Any advice would be very much appreciated.
I moved into a rented property in October and the estate agents who manage the property told us that they would deal with changing the bills such as council tax, water and gas & electric into our names for us, and then it would be up to us to switch providers if we wanted to.
So after a few weeks we received letters about council tax and water but didn’t get one from an energy provider. We have it a bit longer and then decided to phone up the current provider, who then said that they were never informed of anyone taking over the property. He then tried to sign me up for a plan which I declined because I wanted to see what the best deals I could get else where were.
I switched provider and then waited for a final bill. It is now February and I finally get a final bill from the previous provider addressed to the occupier, saying that we owe them £55 which is all standing charges going back to August. But it also says we haven’t used any energy from the reading they have been given. So I am assuming the previous tenants didn’t give them a final reading.
Anyway my other half says to ignore it because it is addressed to the occupier and so they can’t pursue us for the money, because you can’t take an unnamed person to court, and with it being a low amount they probably wouldn’t bother. I’m not sure if I’m happy to do this though.
I see it as I have several options but I’m unsure which would be the best to take.
1.) we ignore it, until we receive something with our names on it, but by then there may be extra charges for default payments.
2.) I just pay the bill it is only £55 after all, however they would then have my details if they were to back charge any energy.
3.) I phone them up and say that we are only liable from October when we moved in and that the charges between August and then are not ours. But again they then have my details, and may ask what the meter reading was when we moved in and then get a bigger bill.
Has anyone else been in this sort of position. I am perhaps a bit naive as this is my first home, but I didn’t know about standing charges, and seeing as I never signed a contract and from the energy company’s point we have not used any energy have I entered a deemed contract? Also because the estate agents failed to do as they said they would do I have any defence in that? I don’t mind paying the bill as it is not a lot but don’t then want any backlash with extra bills being sent afterwards.
Any advice would be very much appreciated.

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Comments
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When you phoned the current provider its a bit odd that you didnt give them your details then. But still, you need to do so now. Ignoring this sort of thing is burying your head in the sand and never ends well. Call them, give them your details including the date you moved in and the opening meter reading and ask for an updated bill.0
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@RlC92 - welcome to the forum. You are only liable for energy bills from the date that you took over responsibility for the property. Provide the supplier with a copy of your tenancy agreement and ask them to re-bill you. When you moved into the property, you would have been on a legally-binding Deemed Contract with the existing supplier. As a transfer of supply can take anything from 17 to 35 days, the Deemed Supplier will be entitled to raise a bill.
I am sure that once the Deemed Supplier knows when you became responsible for the property, this 'mess' can be sorted out pretty quickly. That said, memo to yourself: never rely on a letting agent to do something that you can do for yourself.This is a system account and does not represent a real person. To contact the Forum Team email forumteam@moneysavingexpert.com0 -
I would suspect that the property was empty between August and October when you moved in; letting agents are notorious for trying to get the new tenants pay for the charges whilst empty -which should be paid by the property owner- who sometimes are impossible to get hold of!!0
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Anyway my other half says to ignore it because it is addressed to the occupier and so they can’t pursue us for the money, because you can’t take an unnamed person to court, and with it being a low amount they probably wouldn’t bother.
As stated above, the moment you move in you have entered a legally binding deemed contract with the energy supplier. If you don't give them your name, you have no way of challenging the accuracy of the bill.
Does your 'other half' seriously think that not giving them your name absolves you from paying a valid debt?
The standard procedure if you didn't co-operate would be to pass the debt to a Debt Collection Agency and it would not be the most difficult task to discover your details. They would take over the debt and add their fee. Whilst they might not take the matter to court for a small amount it would affect your credit record.0
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