As a tenant what are my rights here?

Katsumoto47

Ill try to keep a long story real short.

• Rent an apartment from a letting agency

Now according to the letting agency we can only get gas from one company. The company is a local company if you could even call it that. Its one man in a ****ty office with sketchy invoices.

1. We can only pay them cash (no online options to pay) They provide had written reciepts

2. They've overcharged us multiple times (we got our bills sorted after weeks fightinging with them)

3. Our gas is off all weekend. No hot water for anyone in the buidling. There is no number to contact for us having no gas. So we are screwed until Monday at least. We go NO notice of the gas being out.

So we spoke to our landlords about them so many times.

We can't get gas apparently from anyone else???? surely thats bull****.

Since when could anyone have a ****ing monopoly on gas?

TheChizler

Does the gas come from the grid or do you have a tank? Do you have your own boiler or is it shared with neighbours?

Katsumoto47

TheChizler wrote: »

Does the gas come from the grid or do you have a tank? Do you have your own boiler or is it shared with neighbours?

So from my basic understanding of gas. We all have metres outside the house and everyone shares the same gas so it must be from a private tank or grid?

trobbin

Where's your gas meter? Bord Gais national gas network own the meter and supply pipes. Call gas company ask who's name bill is in, tell them your the tenant and you'd like to be billed directly. Don't tell the landlord anything.

Katsumoto47

trobbin wrote: »

Where's your gas meter? Bord Gais national gas network own the meter and supply pipes. Call gas company ask who's name bill is in, tell them your the tenant and you'd like to be billed directly. Don't tell the landlord anything.

Everyone's metre is outside the apartment building

Call board gais or the gas company?

K.Flyer

A few apt blocks in Dublin are run off a communal heating system with consumption worked out by water flow meters located in service boxes on each floor.
Do you have a Gas boiler in your apartment, or just a hot water storage tank.

Katsumoto47

K.Flyer wrote: »

A few apt blocks in Dublin are run off a communal heating system with consumption worked out by water flow meters located in service boxes on each floor.
Do you have a Gas boiler in your apartment, or just a hot water storage tank.

Gas boiler

judeboy101

Arthur Daly style gas dealers don't sell through the national grid?

K.Flyer

Katsumoto47 wrote: »

Gas boiler

Ok, can you go to your Gas Meter and post a pic of it here, because different meters have different types of serial numbers.
With the serial number you can phone Gas Networks Ireland 1850 200694 and give them your address and serial number. They will be able to verify to you if is a legitimate meter and if it is a registered meter, they will also be able to give you your GPRN number which you will need to change provider.
You may be on a Tank or Communal supply, but check with Gas Networks first.

Macha

Your right to switch gas or electricity provider is guaranteed under EU law (it's a pretty basic concept to get more competition into the energy market). But it's also confirmed here: https://switcher.ie/gas-electricity/guides/switch-energy/switching-energy-supplier-as-a-tenant/. Basically, as long as you pay the bills directly, you get to choose your supplier.

K.Flyer

Macha wrote: »

Your right to switch gas or electricity provider is guaranteed under EU law (it's a pretty basic concept to get more competition into the energy market). But it's also confirmed here: https://switcher.ie/gas-electricity/guides/switch-energy/switching-energy-supplier-as-a-tenant/. Basically, as long as you pay the bills directly, you get to choose your supplier.

There are a few apartment blocks in Dublin where this is Not possible because of the system that has been installed throughout the buildings.

In short, there are a couple of great big furnaces delivering heating and hot water to all of the apartments. Meters on the pipework from the main arterial system measure demand for heating and hot water to the individual apartment. These are then read by the management company and calculated into share of gas consumption with extra added in for main system maintenance and upkeep and the apartments billed accordingly.
The management are supposed to negotiate a competitive price with the energy supplier because they are the main purchaser buying in bulk volume.
In these scenarios, because of the unique metering system, you are stuck with the prices provided by the management company.

ED E

District heating is done similarly across europe. Unfortunately in said systems there can only be one provider but its usually the municipality and is 40% cheaper.

Eric Cartman

District / Block heating is common in europe , but not the case here.

the OP has their own gas boiler in the apartment and theres a readable gas meter somewhere outside.

If that meter is connected to mains piped gas, you can choose whoever you want, thats on you.

If however whats feeding those meters is a big tank , it could be that a company has contracted calor to fill said tank and they're metering / reselling the gas in it.

Im not sure if theres legal ramifications for reselling energy like that , but regardless of that, if its a case of a tank of gas being re-sold, you're kind of stuck with hand written receipt man (which is still perfectly legal)

K.Flyer

It might also be a case of a big old converted house with one legit gas meter and some metered lines from that to individual apts., like something you may find on a granny flat.
Or, it may also be a Calor type scenario, as you say.
As I said to the O.P already, to get the serial number from the meter and phone Gas Networks Ireland and find out if it is a registered meter directly connected to the mains gas network. If it is, then there should be nothing to prevent the o.p. from choosing who their energy supplier is.

4ensic15

Macha wrote: »

Your right to switch gas or electricity provider is guaranteed under EU law (it's a pretty basic concept to get more competition into the energy market). But it's also confirmed here: https://switcher.ie/gas-electricity/guides/switch-energy/switching-energy-supplier-as-a-tenant/. Basically, as long as you pay the bills directly, you get to choose your supplier.

That says nothing about a clause in the lease stating that a tenant is not to change supplier. many landlords include such a clause because of the hassle when tenants leave owing for supply.

Paulw

4ensic15 wrote: »

That says nothing about a clause in the lease stating that a tenant is not to change supplier. many landlords include such a clause because of the hassle when tenants leave owing for supply.

But, you can't contract away your statutory rights. So, a clause in a lease contract can be void if it breaches your statutory rights.

A landlord can't restrict your right to choice just because it's an inconvenience to him.

4ensic15

Paulw wrote: »

But, you can't contract away your statutory rights. So, a clause in a lease contract can be void if it breaches your statutory rights.

A landlord can't restrict your right to choice just because it's an inconvenience to him.

Unless the statute allows for it. the residential tenancies Act for example has numerous sections allowing the parties contract out of their statutory rights.

L1011

It's possible the building is connected to a tank, not a BGN mains. Entire estates sometimes are. You are stuck with whoever owns the piping then