Debt Letters Left By Previous Tenant

user1977

sevenhills said:

user1977 said:

Who told you that nonsense? There's no problem if it's been delivered correctly (i.e. to the correct address, which it has). Might not help you any, of course, and there's no principle that you're liable for her bills anyway.

You can't open someone else's mail

Like I said, there is no law prohibiting you from opening mail sent to your address. It doesn't matter whose name is on it.

Usual laws about fraud, theft etc still apply of course.

SusieT

sevenhills said:

user1977 said:

Who told you that nonsense? There's no problem if it's been delivered correctly (i.e. to the correct address, which it has). Might not help you any, of course, and there's no principle that you're liable for her bills anyway.

You can't open someone else's mail, but who is going to know.
I still get debt letters from when I had a lodger. I open them and have a read. Then into the bin, as he went back to India.

You can open mail if it is addressed to your house. It is NOT legal to use the information gained by doing so if it would be detrimental to the person named in it (calling the sender to say that Ms/Mr Ex Tenant is no longer at this address is not detrimental to the person). 
In this case I would open the letters, inform the sender that they are no longer there and bin the letter.  
After a few months when records are updated you can normally use a tracing agency to find someone for not a lot of money. I doubt this person is worth tracing as it sounds unlikely that they would pay more than £1 a month even with a court judgement, but the creditors would at some point be able to find the new address if they are notified rather than keep sending letters. Return to sender ones take months to get back to the sender and even then they may not bother actioning them.

Ath_Wat

wolvesbruza said:

Shell are stating that unless 'I' give them a forwarding address or the ex tenant gets in touch they will simply keep sending the letters to my property.

So?  Let them, if they insist.

wolvesbruza said:

Not only is this causing me untold stress having never been in debt previously. It is also causing my new tenant stress.

You are not in debt now.  Why on earth is your new tenant stressed?  Some letters are arriving that are not addressed to them; tell them to put them on one side until you come round and collect them.

Ath_Wat

Just to check, as I don't think I can see it clearly stated, are all the bills from the few months when she was a sole tenant (not the ex partner) and were the accounts all transferred into her name at that point?

wolvesbruza

From what Shell told me the bill ran from September 2021 to May 22. In that time...

The ex partner moved out September due to a legal situation arising from their relationship - Although he was on the tenancy agreement until end of December. Shell say he was liable for that portion of the bill for that period.

From January to May the previous tenant is liable according to Shell. However with no forwarding address or what looks like clear appetite to chase the tenant down they simply keep sending the bill addressed in her name to my property.

May - June is apparently my bill to pay. Which I am contesting because although the tenants section 21 ended in May she told me to take her to court as she wasnt moving and stayed in the property until late June when she randomly moved.

We refurbed the property 2nd week of June and the new tenant moved in a week later.

Therefore at best I owe a weeks cost, which I am fine with.

Although I have provided clear conversations between myself and the ex tenant outlining when she actually moved out to corroberate the above they wont accept this as proof she was still at the property in June.

It's a total mess!

wolvesbruza

No she never transfered any accounts into her name, instead leaving them as 'Owner/Occupier'

user1977

SusieT said:

sevenhills said:

user1977 said:

Who told you that nonsense? There's no problem if it's been delivered correctly (i.e. to the correct address, which it has). Might not help you any, of course, and there's no principle that you're liable for her bills anyway.

You can't open someone else's mail, but who is going to know.
I still get debt letters from when I had a lodger. I open them and have a read. Then into the bin, as he went back to India.

It is NOT legal to use the information gained by doing so if it would be detrimental to the person named in it

Even that bit is only relevant for incorrectly delivered mail (i.e. the postie has put it through the wrong door).

TripleH

You need to send a written letter of complaint stating the facts of the situation.

Ask them to send a bill to you for the period when you officially took back ownership of the property and enclose the meter reading on that day and the final one you took before the new tenant moved in.

Tell them you don't have a forwarding address for the tenant.

If it helps, set your points as bullet point facts, don't give detail about the emotional side or the relationship breakdown, that's not your concern.

You let property between date x and date y. Any liabilities in that period are not yours.

Give them 30 days to process changes then you expect chasing letters to cease.

sevenhills

SusieT said:

You can open mail if it is addressed to your house.

My wife would disagree 😭

Ath_Wat

Hang on, though.  If the bills throughout - and from before she lived there - have been in the name of "owner/occupier"", how do the power company know that she wasn't paying rent to cover all the bills?  Surely this complicates things?  Does she have any contractual relationship with the power company at all?