2nd January 2019
Q: My tenant has left, but she has not paid the gas and electricity bills. What should I do?
A: Contact the utility companies and explain the situation to them. It is more than likely that they will require information from you e.g. tenancy dates, tenant’s full name, contact information, forwarding address and perhaps even the tenancy agreement.
If you do not have a forwarding address for the tenant, then explain this to the company and offer them their past address or that of any guarantors.
I am not saying all utility companies will work in the same way, but they will all have similar policies and procedures regarding such scenarios.
My top tip would be to never throw a tenancy agreement away, as you never know when an old bill will need paying!
Whenever you have a new tenant move in make it YOUR responsibility to register everything under their name, and don’t leave this to them. Do not let the bills stay in your name. You may wonder why it matters, as long as the bills are being paid, but this scenario provides one good example as to why it is necessary to register the utilities under the tenant’s name.
If you have any property management questions, or if you need any assistance, please do get in touch.
Richard Bond
