Electric bill in previous tennants name

Gift of the Gabbert · 13-11-2012 5:21am #1

I share a house with a few other people and the name on the electricity bill is someone who doesn't live here anymore,does that mean we are not liable to pay it?

Peregrinus · 13-11-2012 5:32am

The name on the electricity bill is not necessarily the name on the contract with the power company. But if you or any of your housemates had signed a contract, you would probably remember.

Assuming you consumed the power in question - i.e. it was supplied to the house while you were all resident there then, even if you have no contractual liability, there are various steps the power company could take to require you to pay for the power you have consumed.

The first, and often the most effective is to cut off the power supply to the house. To get the power reconnected you would have to sign a contract and pay a reconnection fee, and even then the power company might well take the position that it didn't wish to enter into a contract with you unless the arrears for power already supplied to the premises, while you were resident, were cleared. There'd probably be some negotiation over that last point.

Gift of the Gabbert · 13-11-2012 5:37am

Cheers.Just to be clear I only moved in a while after this person left.

fasttalkerchat · 13-11-2012 5:41am

Gift of the Gabbert wrote: »

Cheers.Just to be clear I only moved in a while after this person left.

When he moved out was there a new lease signed or did someone replace him on the lease?

Victor · 13-11-2012 7:07pm

Gift of the Gabbert wrote: »

I share a house with a few other people and the name on the electricity bill is someone who doesn't live here anymore,does that mean we are not liable to pay it?

While it is primarily the responsibility of the account holder to pay, if you don't pay, potentially the account holder or supplier could sue you and/or have you prosecuted for theft of service.

Electric bill in previous tennants name

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