standing charges for executor account

FatherPete

Hello all and thank you for your replies. Today I finally obtained a detailed bill for the gas and electricity used from 1/9/21 up until 19/8/22. 
Total charge for energy was 49p. Yes, 49 pence. All of the rest of the £270 odd bill is standing charge, for an empty property. The smart meters don't work so I had to do a 90 mile round trip to read them myself in order to get the readings which I phoned in to the supplier so that they could generate the bill. Macman, sounds like a rip-off to me. 

pochase

While you have a meter installed and can get energy whenever you want you are paying the standing charge.

Otherwise you need to get the meters removed, but the cost for that is very high, for gas about £700 and the same to install the meter again.

macman

FatherPete said:

Hello all and thank you for your replies. Today I finally obtained a detailed bill for the gas and electricity used from 1/9/21 up until 19/8/22. 
Total charge for energy was 49p. Yes, 49 pence. All of the rest of the £270 odd bill is standing charge, for an empty property. The smart meters don't work so I had to do a 90 mile round trip to read them myself in order to get the readings which I phoned in to the supplier so that they could generate the bill. Macman, sounds like a rip-off to me. 

Is this property on the market? If so, you could have asked the EA to read them for you. Or a local keyholder?
The s/c covers the environmental charges, the cost of maintaining the service, of reading the meters and billing the account, exactly as you contracted to as executor.
If you don't want to keep incurring s/c's, then you need to sell the property. It appears that you have left it unheated right through the winter, which, as well as the risk of a pipe burst, will result in damp and mould developing.
Is there a reason why it's not sold after 15 months? What the estate is now paying out per month in council tax, after the 6m allowance, must be more than the total energy bill for those 15 months?

QrizB

FatherPete said:

Hello all and thank you for your replies. Today I finally obtained a detailed bill for the gas and electricity used from 1/9/21 up until 19/8/22. 
Total charge for energy was 49p. Yes, 49 pence. All of the rest of the £270 odd bill is standing charge, for an empty property. The smart meters don't work so I had to do a 90 mile round trip to read them myself in order to get the readings which I phoned in to the supplier so that they could generate the bill. Macman, sounds like a rip-off to me.

You're likely to get a £400 rebate this winter, so there's that.

Superzero

My late Mother was with Scottish Power and I informed them of her death. A bereavement account was set up by me on behalf of my daughter who we thought was the executor. All was well until we received an estimated bill which was way over. Someone had forgotten to transfer the credit balance to the bereavement account. I got this sorted and the account was still in credit as the home had been empty since March. The very helpful lady told me to read the meters in August to get an idea if all was still in credit. Today (Aug) I read the meters but  a young lady who answered this time would not speak to me as I was not the executor. I gave all the account details but she would not agree to have the readings. We found out that the executor was my mothers cousin who lived in Essex. According to  the young woman on the phone the readings had to be done by her. Not great, since the house is in Staffordshire near me. I notice that the coop say that an executor can farm out jobs like this to others if they are up to their elbows but common sense did not prevail here. I ended saying we will let them know when the property is sold. Their loss.

kipsterno1

You are not being ripped off, the estate is responsible for the bills not you. There are two choices, the property is connected to utility services and they charge for that or you, as executor, arrange to have the utilities disconnected. I would not advise the second option.

Robin9

Are you doing the weekly checks that the insurers ask for ?

Read the meters at that time  - either submit them online or give them to the executor to send on.

dunstonh

care: 2022 thread revival.

 but  a young lady who answered this time would not speak to me as I was not the executor.

The executor has the legal authority to act on behalf of the estate.  So, she is correct.

We found out that the executor was my mothers cousin who lived in Essex. According to  the young woman on the phone the readings had to be done by her. Not great, since the house is in Staffordshire near me.

You get the readings and give them to the executor.

 I notice that the coop say that an executor can farm out jobs like this to others if they are up to their elbows but common sense did not prevail here.

The executor can appoint others but that doesn't appear to have happened in this case.

Third parties cannot just take it upon themselves to carry out duties that they have not been authorised for.

 I ended saying we will let them know when the property is sold. Their loss.

Its not their loss.  The executor will have a bill to pay from the estate and if its an estimate, you have just created more work for the executor.   So, its actually your mothers cousin who will suffer.