Previous tennant hasn't paid Electricity or Water bills, am i liable for them?

Question

I have just rented a little flat. I love it, i begrudge paying rent but at least its my own space. I have just found out that there is a £300+ outstanding debt for water bills and a £200+ debt for electricity that was kindly left by the previous tennant. Now, the two suppliers are threatening to cut both services. I haven't run these bills up, so when i open my own accounts, are they going to want these debts paying before i can set up my own water/electricity accounts? I'm worried that i will not be able to get electricity/water without clearing the previous debt first. I WILL NOT be paying off someone else's debt. I am renting the property through an agent. I have also had the meters read on the inventory. What am i to do?

Answer 1

Ring up the companies.

Answer 2

You are not responsible for someone else's debt and you can not be denied utility service because a previous tenant left without paying. It's up to the utility company to go after that tenant.

Answer 3

Of course not; they're not your debt. Just phone up the companies concerned as soon as possible and tell them that you want to transfer the utilities into your name. They may take meter readings over the phone or they may send someone out.

Once this is done it's up to them to chase the previous tenant and you should hear no more about it.

Answer 4

No its not your responsibility, if your renting from an agent, then they are the ones who should contact the utilities with the closing reading and forwarding address from the old tenant, and the new readings for you. This is what they get paid for. If you get fed up with waiting for them to do it, just ring utilities and give new reading and give the agents address for a forwarding address for the previous tenants.

Answer 5

You are not liable for anything that you did not use and you did not contract for.  When this happened to me, i had to stand in line at the Utility Office and show identification that i was not the previous tenant.  Then they turned on the water and electric. /

Answer 6

The only way this would be difficult to resolve is if the previous tenant's bills were in your name. Seeing as I doubt this, it should be a matter of clearing up a misunderstanding.

Answer 7

no you are not liable for the debt the main thing is you have had the meters read.if it was me i would go back to the agent and let them sort it out good luck

Answer 8

When you take on a tenancy it is your responsibility to contact all utility companies and pass on y our details and the readings from meters to them. The account is then in your name from those readings. If there are outstanding bills pass them to your agent or landlord who will then contact the companies with forwarding addresses etc of previous tenants. It is not the agent or landlords responsibility to register you with the utility companies in fact these companies will insist on the information coming from the new tenant with copy of lease etc.

It is important to remember the agent or landlord does not always have a forwarding address for previous tenants as, especially since April 2008, tenants have a habit of keeping their LHA and vanishing into thin air after a few months.

Answer 9

Call the utilities immediately and get the accounts in your name as of your move-in date.  The only way you can be possibly held liable is if you use the accounts that are under the previous tenant's name.