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Electricity due

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  • 30-06-2010 1:07pm
    #1
    carlowboy99
    Closed Accounts Posts: 1 ✭


    Hi,

    I moved into my appartment last January and the landlord has only just sent the electricity bills to me. The 3 bills are in his name for some reason and it is nearly 900 Euros. He got the first one in April so I dont know why it has taken so long for him to give me them. I thought that electricity was included in the rent but he say that is never the case.

    He says he is not negotiating on it cos everyone has to pay electricity bills but I think it is unfair to be sticking me with a big bill out of the blue. He also wants me to put the electricity bill in his name.

    Any thoughts from people here? I am not from Ireland so I just need to see what is normal here.

    cb99


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    #2
    D3PO
    Registered Users Posts: 7,879 ✭✭✭D3PO


    you used the electricity so you pay for it unless you agreed in writing that bills were included in the rent which you didnt.

    He didnt hand you the bills but you didnt ask either. Did you not go hmm I havent got an ESB bill I wonder why ? I dont know why your suprised

    As for the bills going into your name. Makes sense then the bill will go direct to you.


    Obviously you should have had the meter read and put the bill in your name when you moved in but too late now. You will learn a lesson for your next rental though


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    #3
    not even wrong
    Registered Users Posts: 480 ✭✭not even wrong


    carlowboy99 wrote: »
    I am not from Ireland so I just need to see what is normal here.
    In Ireland it is normal for tenants to pay for electricity they use. Rarely a place will be advertised as "bills included in rent", but this is the exception rather than the rule -- unless specifically agreed otherwise, the tenant is responsible for the utility bills. It is also normal for all utility bills to be under the tenant's name.


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    #4
    NothingMan
    Registered Users Posts: 11,178 ✭✭✭✭NothingMan


    First thing we did when we moved in was put the ESB in our name. Even switched to Bord Gais without saying anything as it is our account and all our responsibility.
    He also wants me to put the electricity bill in his name

    He wants you to put it in his name? Or change it to yours?

    I would definitely keep it in your own name.

    It is definitely bad form to hand you 3 bills at once. A lump sum is always harder to come up with than 3 smaller bills. I'm surprised he didn't have you transfer the ESB to your own name when you moved in first.


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    #5
    petes
    Registered Users Posts: 8,382 ✭✭✭petes


    Is it just me or does anyone thing the €900 is excessive?

    OP, how were the three bills broken down?


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    #6
    NothingMan
    Registered Users Posts: 11,178 ✭✭✭✭NothingMan


    Insurgent wrote: »
    Is it just me or does anyone thing the €900 is excessive?

    OP, how were the three bills broken down?


    Well if it's 3, 2 monthly bills at 300 each it's high but not shocking. When we moved into our apartment and had storage heating on it was €260 for our first bill. Then we quickly turned off all but 1 heater and it dropped to €180 and that's a small apartment. So a bigger place could be that expensive if there's storage heating.


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    #7
    BC
    Registered Users Posts: 1,326 ✭✭✭BC


    I would ask the landlord for the meter reading from when you moved in and the meter reading now. He should have a taken a reading on the day you moved in. Check also nthat the bills are actual bills rather than estimated bills.


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    #8
    D3PO
    Registered Users Posts: 7,879 ✭✭✭D3PO


    BC wrote: »
    I would ask the landlord for the meter reading from when you moved in and the meter reading now. He should have a taken a reading on the day you moved in. Check also nthat the bills are actual bills rather than estimated bills.

    whats the point in asking what the reading was 6 months later ? The landlord is going to give the figure on the first bill obviously.

    is that what it really was ? maybe maybe not but as the tennant didnt make him take a reading they will ahve to accept his word.

    as for the post saying 900 is high yes it is but if there are storage heaters and excessive use of an immersion its well within the realms of probability


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    #9
    conorhal
    Registered Users Posts: 6,995 ✭✭✭conorhal


    That's the peril of not asking the right questions from the start, presume nothing unless you have it in writing.
    It would be pretty unusual in a rental property for electricity to be included, after all it's you thats using it. Equally, most landlords will require you to put bills in your own name thus making you liable and not them if you run up a massive bill and then skip out of the place.

    That said, the billing address should have been the apartment, not his home. My ESB bill is still in my landlords name but it comes to the apartment so at least I know it's due. It's a bit rich of him to turn up with three bills and demand you pay up despite him withholding them from you.

    I would tell him this: I'll pay the most recent bill in full, you pay the previous two bills because the reason that they are unpaid is because you failed to notify me in a timely fashion that the bill was due, and I will pay you back 50 euro a month until the balance is paid off and I will have the billing address changed.
    I'd also take a meter reading if I were you.


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