14th
Sep 2013
Landlords in Wales may have to provide water companies water companies with the details of their tenants if new legislation, that is being considered, is introduced. This so far has been backed by Alun Davies the minister for natural resources and food.
The average household in Wales is having to pay an extra £20 per year because of bad debt incurred by water companies because of unpaid water bills causing the Welsh government to undertake a consultation on draft regulations to stamp out the increasing debts
Davies said: "I am conscious of the strain that utility bills can put on people's finances and that the problem is much more pronounced for households that are managing on low incomes.
"Bad debt is partly built up when water companies are unable to identify who occupies a property. This can be a particular problem with tenanted properties and can make it very difficult for water companies to collect outstanding charges."
If the draft regulations go through then landlords will have to, by law, give water companies the details of their tenant;’ names, addresses, date of occupancy as well as their date of birth. Failing to do this within a given time period will mean that landlords would become liable, jointly with their tenant to pay the bills.
"This should make it much easier for outstanding charges to be collected and should ultimately reduce water bills for householders in Wales," added Davies.
Watch this space as although Ministers in England prefer a voluntary option for landlords, they are currently analysing the results of a consultation that ran last year.
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PIMS Comment
The water companies have been trying for years to make the property owner liable for Tenant Debts. In many respect the Tenant is liable [term of the Tenancy] but PIMS has always advocated ensuring you contact suppliers and council tax with dates and readings. It is not uncommon for suppliers to bully Landlords into paying, whereas Landlords shouldl stand firm.
The proposed legislation means the Landlord MUST retain proof of notification, whilst the energy companies could introduce an E Notification system- They wont because then too easy - their prefered position [subjective comment] would be badt debt, chase owner burden on owner otherwise - owner liable for debt.
A good clause in AST should be similar to ours
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1.4. Unless otherwise agreed in writing by the Landlord, The Tenant must
arrange to be billed, for and pay charges in respect of water sewerage and environmental charges for the property, and to pay for utility supplies consumed and the television licence fee for the property. The Tenant agrees to remain liable for these items after the Expiry of this Tenancy Agreement until the tenancy has legally ended. Where the Tenant allows, either by default of payment or specific instruction, the utility or other services to be cut off, whether during or at the end of the tenancy, the Tenant is to pay, or be liable to pay, the costs associated with reconnecting or resuming those services.
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1.5. The Tenant will be liable for
Council Tax unless the property is a
HMO, only then will the Landlord be liable
All Utility Companies (Gas, Electric & Water)
Council Tax
Likewise you need to tell your local Council Tax Department that a new Tenant has moved in and the start date. Should a Landlord fail to inform council who the Tenants are it is very common for them to chase the Landlord for the
Council Tax Debt. This is why your tenancy should define who is responsible for what at the outset in the tenancy. See
Council Tax Notification New Tenants at the address
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