Do I have any rights as a tennant? 28 February at 9:44AM in Energy 3 replies 346 views

Rosierosebrown

Hello, I am in need of some advice.

I know everyone is experiencing a hike in energy costs however I want to know if I have any rights against my letting agency/landlord. We were informed a month ago that the property we are living in is not a domestic property therefore we have been paying business rates + VAT at an alarming increasing rates compared to others in the area and even much more than national average, even double compared to the already increased prices. For reference, I live in a one bedroom flat, do not use the heating, run on electric, frequently travel (therefore electricity is not in use for 40% of the days within a month) and my bills are around £400.00 which I simply cannot afford. Because we are not listed as a domestic property, we were not entitled to government discount scheme. 

Can anyone advise me on if there is anything I can do?

Thank you in advance

MattMattMattUK

Rosierosebrown said:

Hello, I am in need of some advice.

I know everyone is experiencing a hike in energy costs however I want to know if I have any rights against my letting agency/landlord. We were informed a month ago that the property we are living in is not a domestic property therefore we have been paying business rates + VAT at an alarming increasing rates compared to others in the area and even much more than national average, even double compared to the already increased prices. For reference, I live in a one bedroom flat, do not use the heating, run on electric, frequently travel (therefore electricity is not in use for 40% of the days within a month) and my bills are around £400.00 which I simply cannot afford. Because we are not listed as a domestic property, we were not entitled to government discount scheme. 

Can anyone advise me on if there is anything I can do?

Thank you in advance

Have you established why your flat is not listed as a domestic property? Is the supply a sub meter or do you have an account with an energy provider? Do you pay council tax?

pochase

Do you maybe mean that you don't have a direct account with an energy supplier, but your landlord supplies supplies it using sub meters? That is still a domestic property.

The landlord might have a business energy account and tariff to do so.

That does not mean your not in a domestic property, it just means the energy supply is not domestic.

Good news is that starting yesterday you are now able to apply for the £400 EBSS payment 

https://www.gov.uk/apply-energy-bill-support-if-not-automatic

Bad news is that there is no EPG limiting the unit rates for you. The landlord can bill you the unit rates he is paying, even if they are more expensive than the domestic SVT, he is just not allowe dto profit from selling you energy. 

Shedman

pochase said:

Good news is that starting yesterday you are now able to apply for the £400 EBSS payment 

https://www.gov.uk/apply-energy-bill-support-if-not-automatic

Bad news is that there is no EPG limiting the unit rates for you. The landlord can bill you the unit rates he is paying, even if they are more expensive than the domestic SVT, he is just not allowe dto profit from selling you energy. 

Thanks for the heads up on that as have missed it....have just got one of the stepdaughters to apply as she appears eligible and, reading through the criteria,  I've seen that care home residents paying their own fees are also eligible so we've applied for the MiL as well.