E.ON - now making everyone in the household liable to pay the bill! Is this legal?

Cardew

Houbara said:

People can "target, or chase " using debt collectors as much as they want.Obtaining the money off them is a different matter. I was targeted many times for a private car parking company for £155...good luck to them in getting a penny out of me, they have given up after selling the debt on to three different chancers having a go.....The same will apply to a supplier "chancing their arm " in obtaining money off someone not named on the account..Prove it in the small claims court with your expensive solicitor will be the response and the suppliers ( or who they have sold the debt to )  will drop it .. They can t even collect back money off most private people fiddling the meters, a criminal action , so  little chance on "chasing " a couple of students or a partner, or son and daughter over 18.. Eons bluster means nothing unless they expressly make it a condition to have everyone over 18  living in the property named on the account .
..

Absolutely correct!

Most of the time the DCAs use threatening tactics in an attempt to frighten people into paying. The DCAs know if they go to court it is a civil matter and even if they win the case, they might get £1 a month! The danger in that case is that it can reflect on a credit record.

The only point of my intervention in this thread is to point out that if you have lived in a property you can be liable for utility bills; and that it is not difficult to prove a person lived in a property.

[Deleted User]

Cardew said:

Houbara said:

People can "target, or chase " using debt collectors as much as they want.Obtaining the money off them is a different matter. I was targeted many times for a private car parking company for £155...good luck to them in getting a penny out of me, they have given up after selling the debt on to three different chancers having a go.....The same will apply to a supplier "chancing their arm " in obtaining money off someone not named on the account..Prove it in the small claims court with your expensive solicitor will be the response and the suppliers ( or who they have sold the debt to )  will drop it .. They can t even collect back money off most private people fiddling the meters, a criminal action , so  little chance on "chasing " a couple of students or a partner, or son and daughter over 18.. Eons bluster means nothing unless they expressly make it a condition to have everyone over 18  living in the property named on the account .
..

Absolutely correct!

Most of the time the DCAs use threatening tactics in an attempt to frighten people into paying. The DCAs know if they go to court it is a civil matter and even if they win the case, they might get £1 a month! The danger in that case is that it can reflect on a credit record.

The only point of my intervention in this thread is to point out that if you have lived in a property you can be liable for utility bills; and that it is not difficult to prove a person lived in a property.

I just know how rare it is for a supplier to take anyone to court for theft of gas or electric, and it can amount to thousands of pounds .They hardly ever do because of the costs involved and the likelihood of getting money out of the sort of people who indulge .. I suppose Eon are within their rights to have a go at upholding this T and C  , best of luck, some will pay up as morally they do owe the money if say, hubby is no longer with us and he was the named account holder  . I certainly paid up when my Father died and I was nt named on the account
.Margaret Thatcher tried to share out the rates to every one of working age over 18 who lived in the property ..That failed ..
There are many parts of a suppliers Terms and Conditions which are ignored by the occupiers. I think this one will be mostly ignored too

Former_E.ON_Company_Representative:_Malc

gbhxu said:

As the title says, as of April 1st, anyone in the household, not just the named person on the bill, is liable for paying the bill.
This is the change in T & Cs

All occupants of a property are now responsible for paying bills, not just the individuals named on an account.

Is this legal under contract law?

I can see it now. I ring up E.ON and because I'm not the named person on the bill, E.ON won't talk to me about it stating GDPR.

Hello gbhxu  and just to let you know, if you're not the named person on the account and need to talk to us about it, the person responsible can give you permission to look after it for them.

There's a Letter of Authority that can be downloaded from our website and sent in to set this up. It can also be set up so our system flags the account as having Third Party Consent as soon as it's opened by an advisor.

Malc

badmemory

How can they hold you responsible for a bill that they refuse to talk to you about if the named person on the bill doesn't give you permission?  Talk about having your cake & eating it!

Do you seriously think that someone who is about to renege on their utility bills of £1000s is actually going to give the poor mug about to be landed with it permission to see what a mire they are about to be left in?

nottsphil

Cardew said:

gbhxu said:

Here is a scan of the change in T&Cs
The top line says it all.

Agreed, but it is just clarification of the situation that has been the law - under the jointly and severally liable provision - for many years. i.e. it is not a change to contract law as you queried in your OP.

Clarification? 
It's stating that any children in a household or jointly liable too! 

OrbitHeadache

nottsphil said:

Cardew said:

gbhxu said:

Here is a scan of the change in T&Cs
The top line says it all.

Agreed, but it is just clarification of the situation that has been the law - under the jointly and severally liable provision - for many years. i.e. it is not a change to contract law as you queried in your OP.

Clarification? 
It's stating that any children in a household or jointly liable too! 

I somehow doubt children under the age of 16 or even 18 would be liable for debts.

badmemory

I will repeat - how can someone be held responsible for a bill that they are not allowed to know anything about?

gbhxu

E.ON_Company_Representative:_Malc said:

gbhxu said:

As the title says, as of April 1st, anyone in the household, not just the named person on the bill, is liable for paying the bill.
This is the change in T & Cs

All occupants of a property are now responsible for paying bills, not just the individuals named on an account.

Is this legal under contract law?

I can see it now. I ring up E.ON and because I'm not the named person on the bill, E.ON won't talk to me about it stating GDPR.

Hello gbhxu  and just to let you know, if you're not the named person on the account and need to talk to us about it, the person responsible can give you permission to look after it for them.

There's a Letter of Authority that can be downloaded from our website and sent in to set this up. It can also be set up so our system flags the account as having Third Party Consent as soon as it's opened by an advisor.

Malc

I already have permission. That is not the point.

It is the fact that E.ON are now making everyone in the household responsible not just the named bill payer.
This is not legal under contract law. 
This is why we have the phrase "Ask the bill payers' permission" on phone-in quizzes

OrbitHeadache

gbhxu said:

E.ON_Company_Representative:_Malc said:

gbhxu said:

As the title says, as of April 1st, anyone in the household, not just the named person on the bill, is liable for paying the bill.
This is the change in T & Cs

All occupants of a property are now responsible for paying bills, not just the individuals named on an account.

Is this legal under contract law?

I can see it now. I ring up E.ON and because I'm not the named person on the bill, E.ON won't talk to me about it stating GDPR.

Hello gbhxu  and just to let you know, if you're not the named person on the account and need to talk to us about it, the person responsible can give you permission to look after it for them.

There's a Letter of Authority that can be downloaded from our website and sent in to set this up. It can also be set up so our system flags the account as having Third Party Consent as soon as it's opened by an advisor.

Malc

I already have permission. That is not the point.

It is the fact that E.ON are now making everyone in the household responsible not just the named bill payer.
This is not legal under contract law. 
This is why we have the phrase "Ask the bill payers' permission" on phone-in quizzes

But it is legal, it has been pointed out to you in many posts that it is legal and why it is legal.

Cardew

gbhxu said:

It is the fact that E.ON are now making everyone in the household responsible not just the named bill payer.
This is not legal under contract law. 
This is why we have the phrase "Ask the bill payers' permission" on phone-in quizzes

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So in your opinion 'Jointly and severally liable' is meaningless?