Landlord ran up huge energy bill and wants tenant to pay

LandlordProb

A friend who is a tenant has asked me to help them with the following problem: They rent a flat from a private landlord and,due to the roof leaking and the resulting dampness ,had to move out for 2 months and live in a hotel(paid for by landlord's insurance company).However, when they returned and received the gas/electric bill(it's in their name) it was very high and included the 2 month's that they were in the hotel. It transpired that the bill was so high because the work men carrying out the repairs had been using the electricity/gas in the flat for heating and their power tools during the 2 months. Landlord is saying that it's nothing really nothing to do with him and that he wants the tenant to liase with the energy company direct.He even suggested that they just move out without paying it! I suspect the energy company will say it is the tenant's responsibilty and that they should pay the bill and then claim it back from land lord.However,seeing as he also holds their deposit........... can anyone come up with a solution to this awkward problem? Thanks.

dimbo61

It is the tenant's responsibility as there names will be on the bills.
Getting a CCJ will make getting a mortgage, credit card or loan very difficult.
How much power do a couple of workmen use from 8-18 Monday to Friday ?
Unless they had heaters/humidifiers on 24/7 to dry out the building ?
Write a letter with pen and paper to the landlord.
Did they report the leaking roof as soon as it happened

LandlordProb

I gather,from speaking to her, that the bill was normally £70 a month,but when they came back from 2 months away in hotel it was a huge £700 for 2 months! She says that the land lord is now claiming that the energy company has admitted to him that it got its calculations wrong and had been under estimating the bill for a period of time prior to the £700 demand. So, would you say that this huge bill is a result of the energy company back dating its bill to make up for the under estimate? The land lord also says that he wants her schedule for the last few months,so he can work out what days and times she was in the flat and see what her share should be. She has no intention of just moving out and was rather shocked at the land lord's suggestion! He still maintains that she needs to liase with the energy company direct. Turns out that it wasn't a severe roof leak, just a very damp room caused by( I imagine) failed damp proofing and it was reported to land lord when it became obvious.

Kynthia

They would have had to pay for gas and electric if they hadn't had to move out, so if they weren't paying for the hotel it is expected they continue paying rent and utility bills.

How much greater is the bill than it would have been if they had lived there the whole time? If not much then they should pay it. If they can prove it's vastly higher then perhaps the landlord could see if the insurance will cover it. If not they need to.pay as it's a bill in their name with the utility company. Not paying will affect their credit and lead to debt collectors chasing them.

FBaby

Is it a lot more than it would have been if they've lived there during that time?

Ms_Chocaholic

They need to check their bills for the last actual meter reading, it could be that they have had estimated readings for a number of months and have been underpaying.

diggingdude

I don't have the knowledge on this issue, so whilst I am sure people are correctly saying the tenant should be paying the bill this is a perfect example of why tenants won't report issues to landlords. They should not be responsible for contributing to repairs they have not caused, that is what rent and the landlords savings are for. If the trade are using excessive electricity/gas/water then the landlord should be paying. You can bet they have been running heaters and dehumidifiers with the plaster etc

ciderboy2009

OP - can we go back a bit on this one:
1) Has your friend been giving regular (monthly) meter readings to their supplier for gas and electricity?
2) When is their last bill (prior to the one just received) where the readings are actual readings rather than estimated ones?
3) How long have they been at the flat?

It sounds to me like their landlord might be correct and they haven't been paying enough with their monthly payments to cover the amount of gas and electric that they have been using and this is just a "catch up" bill

LandlordProb

She moved in last September and the bill to November was 'normal' I'll have to ask her how much.The December-February bill included the Jan-Feb period when she was at a hotel, and was £700.



I'll ask her about the other questions.

LandlordProb

OK,here goes. She tells me that the amount paid initially was based on actual readings, not estimates.
Sep-Oct £12.00
Oct-Jan £43.00
Jan-April £775


When she questioned the third period the land lord told her that the electricity company had told him(not her) that the previous bills were too low and that the third bill was now correct(I presume to clear the outstanding amount) but she just thinks it's 'funny' that this high bill coincided during the period when she wasn't there and there were a load of work men n the flat doing plastering and other related restoration work.The land lord is now requesting her schedule for the period in question so he can see what times she could have been using electricity.

agrinnall

The previous bills certainly look too low to me, although without knowing what the tariff is it's impossible to know for sure. If you tell us which power company it is there may be a rep on here who will see that post and offer to investigate further.