Shared electric meter problems with landlord

Luna_Unicorn

I will try and be as detailed as possible.

After 9 months of paying £31 direct debit, I had a £400 electric bill with the premise that I wasn't paying enough. So it went up to £55. For a 1 bed it didn't make sense.

It turns out my electric bill and feed is also my upstairs neighbours, so the bill is for both my flat AND his flat, but is all on one bill (in my name😭)

After speaking with my upstairs neighbour he informed me he pays the landlord rent with money for bills which the landlord is then supposed to use to pay upstairs utilities.

He obviously hasn't hence the bill going up and up each month (can prove this through my bills).

When I moved in this flat he said I was to pay my own utilities and that for some reason the electric has always been high here.

In December 2018 when the first issue with the bill arose, he said that upstairs paid his utilities by direct debit (proof of this in text). Well this is false.
My upstairs neighbour can prove that he actually pays cash toward his utilities although never gets a receipt.
We have both never had a receipt for rent.

I sat down and worked out my monthly payments, plus the extra I have put in to cover my debt for those 9 months. My landlord told me upstairs should be paying £40 a month cos there's 1 of him and 2 of us (even tho he has had a sublet since february🙄)

So the total bill so far is £358.
For 9 months if he didn't pay £40 a month using the money given from upstairs, that makes the bill remaining his right?

I can't even compare usage for upstairs cos there's only one reading.

I've also reported him to HMRC for tax evasion cos for me and upstairs and probably his other tenants he takes part cash/part bank transfer on rent.

Alongside all that I've needed a new toilet since moving in April 2018. New one has been sat there since 3rd June 2019 waiting to be fitted. Took 12 months for the boiler to be repaired as well as clearing rubbish from previous tenants from the garden.

The dishwasher isn't working and trips the electrics and his response was "wash dishes like the rest of us, don't be so posh lmfao" it's his appliance at the end of the day so screw him I guess.

Last note on the LL, when speaking about the issues I've got his response was that if I wanna move out then give notice cos he has 21 other people waiting to move.

He expects 2 months notice but I'm giving him 1. I am out of here by end of July, but I really need some help on what to do with this bill.

Energy company say its 3rd party so won't do diddly.

Any help is appreciated, sorry for the long post.

Luna_Unicorn

I forgot to add that after him saying that he thinks upstairs pays by direct debit, he said its on one circuit and he's been paying the bill off, of which Swalec have told me there is no account for upstairs.

Flt._Lt._Biggles

Can you post us a copy of the full bill please?

If, as you claim, you have reported your landlord to HMRC, I suggest you start tonight looking for somehere else to live

Owain_Moneysaver

Luna_Unicorn wrote: »

After speaking with my upstairs neighbour he informed me he pays the landlord rent with money for bills which the landlord is then supposed to use to pay upstairs utilities.

When I moved in this flat (landlord) said I was to pay my own utilities and that for some reason the electric has always been high here.

I think that constitutes fraud or unlawful abstraction of electricity from your meter, and I'd be lodging a crime report with the police.

I would also not accept the energy company's statement that it's nothing to do with them, and insist they mark the account as disputed as the electricity has been unlawfully abstracted from you without your knowledge.

You're probably going to have to sue the landlord to get your deposit back, so you'll need to sue for the value of the stolen electricity too.

Luna_Unicorn

I have found somewhere else and got the keys. I've already given him notice also.

Would you recommend I tell him about reporting him to hmrc? Although he tells people so much of his life I don't know how he would know it was me. Can't be really annoyed if hmrc dig around unless he has something to hide.

This is a guy that told me he takes part cash to stop his ex wife knowing how much he earns cos of child support.

Have attached one drive link with latest bill from Dec to Feb (billed quarterly). Account was on hold in Jan so no payment was made.
Lastest bill total is £343.78 have attached screenshot in drive of my payments marked with a green dot. The rest are LL

Edit. Sorry it won't let me add images or links as a new user. Will send them if there's another way.

AndyCF

You can post the image link if its hosted on say imgur or something, it just won't parse (display) for new members. Nothing to stop anyone copy/pasting it into a new tab to display it though.

Luna_Unicorn

drive.google dot com/folderview?id=1mhINUYCKM5CwekvXYrdlg62oX7rrMhpC

Hope that helps just fill in the link blanks

AndyCF

That's viewable once you change the dot com to .com

I would suggest maybe you remove the supplier number (or part of) from the last pic, and that QR code thing too perhaps. Partly why I've not just put the 'working link' here for you to assist others.

Luna_Unicorn

It won't let me add it without dot com sorry lol
Have changed image as advised. Thanks.

Other note to add re: my bill.
I get £140 warm home discount.
I'm also disabled. X

AndyCF

Its OK about the broken link. To be honest it took all of a few seconds (if that) to copy/paste it into the address bar and then change "dot" to "."

As I say I don't want to really post it as you won't be able to edit my post to remove it etc. The QR and meter number thing, perhaps that was overkill I'm not sure but there's no harm in hiding them really I suppose in case the LL should happen to see said post that's all.

Hopefully you'll get some good advice soon in this topic anyway and hopefully not too long before you'll be able to post a working link (and/or edit that one to make it work)

Talldave

Are the meter and consumer unit (distribution board thing) in your flat? If so I would switch off all the circuits that are not supplying your flat immediately.

Edit: just looked at the bill. There are two meters on the bill, was there a meter change?