UK Landlord Forum / Life

The previous tenant in a property got behind with the utilities (and rent, and council tax, hence previous!),
and the Gas and Electricity meters were changed, without reference to me.

I have new tenants lined up to move in but they'd prefer regular credit meters.
The supplier (Southern Electric I think), is offering to change the meters back for £54 each.
Obviously the new tenant doesn't want to pay this.

I appreciate I don't have an obligation to pay for the swap over, and I guess the company now have
the address as having had a bad customer in it, so likely to have more, hence their attitude.
I feel the meters were changed without my permission, so should be changed back for free, but I'm
sure ther'll be some supplier small print that stops that.

I wonder has anyone had experience of this.

Obviously perfect resolution = Credit meters re installed at no cost to Landlord or Tenant.


Thanks

I have clauses in my leases that stipulate that any such changes constitute a breach of lease and they are liable to pay for the reversion back to normal credit-type meters. It is a deduction I would normally make from the deposit. Do you have any rhetoric to in your lease you can point to such that the (ex) tenant cannot claim ignorance?

Personally I would leave it.

Better for everyone.

If the Tenant swaps them back then so be it.

Pori78,

I understand your point, but given how much rent etc was owed,
and all of the other utilities, there is no way, if I choose to do it,
I have any chance of getting the money back.

I was really looking for a way to force the utility company to do it
for nothing, as they didn't have my permission, in the first place.
Sadly I think that is irrelevant !

Thanks for your input.

Boboff

I get this too, and in other circumstances I might have done just that.

Thanks,

Mr C

Exact same thing happened to me and my tenants. They changed them without notifying me.

I really don't like the prepayment meters because I find them inconvenient. Also, if your tenants were behind, they probably have a higher rate e.g. the credit gets eaten up quicker than the normal rate, so the supplier can recoup the owed debt.

When my new tenants moved in, they were kept on the same rate (even though we notified British Gas that the old tenant's had vacated), so they were paying a lot more than they should have been and credit was running out rapidly. For some reason, it was a hassle for them to resolve, but they did eventually.

I think there is an initial fee to change the meters back, but after 6 months, it's free. I think that's what my current tenant's told me. Needless to say, they got changed back ASAP for no fee!

Personally, if you can't get it done for free, I would swallow the cost and revert them back to regular meters. I think most people will prefer the regular system.

I have had recent experience with 4 prepayment meters. It was fine, you phone up, they give you a number to get a key from the shop, and that is it, you get the key, stick money on it, and you have no overhang from previous tenants.