Using electricity in the barn that has not been paid for - HELP!

optimistique1

Ok so two years ago we moved into our new cottage which has an old milking barn outside which has a water and electric supply. The water in the outside barn is supplied from the mains at the house and so was the electricity we thought as the old meter in the barn is taped up.

Unaware to us it now seems this not the case for the electric supply and apparently we have been using electricity in the barn that has not been paid for - It's only light bulbs so no major appliances.

What is the legal position if the electricity board ask us to pay and how on earth would they calculate what electric has been used?

MattMattMattUK

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/6660527/using-electricity-in-the-barn-that-has-not-been-paid-for-help

The legal position is that you would be required to pay, if you refuse to do so then they would follow various debt recovery processes and eventually take civil recovery action.

You say the meter is "taped up", do you mean hidden with tape, do you mean it has been tampered with and then someone has taped closed after, something else?

The base cost would be the standing charge over the period too moved in plus an estimate of usage. There is a methodology for suppliers to use when a meter cannot give readings but it is going to be a bit more complicated for an outbuilding rather than a domestic property. Alternatively you might just find that the previous owner gave a final reading and it can just be calculated from the difference between the two. You can find your supplier using one of the links below depending on what region you are in.

If I were you I would be getting on and sorting this sooner rather than later. My guess is if your usage is as low as you say and those lights have only been used occasionally you will be looking at bill of between £300 and £500. If they are incandescent bulbs, there are lots of them and they have been left ok 24/7 it could be a lot higher.

https://www.ukpowernetworks.co.uk/who-is-my-electricity-supplier-and-what-is-my-mpan

https://www.energynetworks.org/customers/find-my-network-operator

Keep_pedalling

The legal position would be that as the new owners of the barn you will have a deemed contract with whoever the supplier is. As this is a barn this may be a commercial rather than domestic contract which comes with far higher standing charges.

How have you established that the barn is from a separate supply?

Devongardener

You say ‘it seems’ and ‘apparently’, does that mean you have received a bill for the barn, or other notification from a supplier, if not how do you know this is the situation?
When you purchased the property the seller’s information documents would have shown which utility companies were supplying it, was the barn supply listed separately?

As MatMat says above, trace the registered supplier via one of the links.

elsien

from a starting point of almost complete ignorance, if the OP has not had a bill for the barn until now, would the back billing apply here and would that depend on whether it was a domestic or business account?

DE_612183

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/81930557#Comment_81930557

back billing doesn't apply to non-domestic

elsien

If it turns out to be a domestic supply, would it apply then?

QrizB

If it turns out to be a domestic supply, would it apply then?

Failure to register an account and supply an opening meter reading is also a reason to disallow BB protection, if I recall correctly.

so was the electricity we thought as the old meter in the barn is taped up

OP are you able to share a photo of this meter? And whatever other electrical gubbins is associated with it?

tfhnota

If lucky, it will be a seperate meter but fed from the main house meter, just to separate the consumption out if used for a business or rented out in the past, perhaps whacking off the main meter will reveal if it is or not?

Robin9

@optimistique1

Going back to when you moved in did you contact any supplier or read any meter (in the house or the barn) ?

Can you prove that the barn meter is actually supplying you - is there a switch or a fuse marked "cottage" or similar ? Switch off / remove fuse - do you loose supply to the cottage.?

Is it possible this is actually a private sub meter and the supply comes from the house ?

A photo or two would be helpful

DE_612183

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/81930601#Comment_81930601

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/81930601#Comment_81930601

yes, but the likelihood is that it's non-domestic, however the only real test to establish the MPAN number is and then what the supply is classed as.