Power company charge that has me scratching my head...

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DrDee

269 posts

Ultimate Geek

#198146 28-Jun-2016 12:52

Background.

Had a tenant bail from my rental house, they obviously had a debt with power company and didn't close the account as the power got disconnected from the house.

After talking to the power company involved, they would not accept that the tenant has left without filling in an end of tenancy agreement. even providing proof of ownership of the house and the new tenants rental agreement is not enough, only the previous end of tenancy agreement that they know I can never get.

Here is the kicker, there is a $70 charge to get the power back on that either I or the new tenant have to pay, this is a charge that would not be there is the power was still on.

Sooooo.... does it seem right that someone else has to pay for the previous persons problems even though it is outside of their control? Seems a bit rank to me?

Be like filling your car with gas and going to pay and finding out you have to pay extra because the previous car didn't pay for the gas.

It is a trivial amount I suppose, the principal of it annoys me, I would think that charge should get tacked onto the previous tenants outstanding debt?

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2780 posts

Uber Geek

#1581875 28-Jun-2016 13:04

Can you not recover the amount from the previous tenants bond?

DrDee

269 posts

Ultimate Geek

#1581905 28-Jun-2016 13:10

Inphinity:

Can you not recover the amount from the previous tenants bond?

All of the bond went on repairs, and then some... :(

And I believe it shouldn't be my problem to chase up debt that their customer has incurred... But it actually is...

Chalk it up to a bad experience, basically the power company have said that it is a courtesy to leave the power on, even though there is no charge if they do, so bad luck...

djtOtago

1153 posts

Uber Geek

#1581913 28-Jun-2016 13:22

Talk to a different power company.

There is no rule saying you or your next tenant have to reconnect using the current power company.

DrDee

269 posts

Ultimate Geek

#1581941 28-Jun-2016 13:42

djtOtago:

Talk to a different power company.

There is no rule saying you or your next tenant have to reconnect using the current power company.

I think no matter where we go there will be a re-connection fee now :(

After talking to a power representative about this a bit further it only happens if the house is new, or if the power is disconnected over debt. So anybody/everybody who has ever paid a connection fee at any time (other than for a new house) has to realise the only reason they are paying it is because the previous bill payer at that property is a bad debtor.

I wonder how much money power companies have generated out of making new customers pay because of a previous customers debt?

richms

28189 posts

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#1581945 28-Jun-2016 13:46

Yes there will be a charge for connection, and when I last asked about it the responsibility was on the landlord to ensure that power was able to be reconnected.

Richard rich.ms

DrDee

269 posts

Ultimate Geek

#1582015 28-Jun-2016 14:17

richms:

Yes there will be a charge for connection, and when I last asked about it the responsibility was on the landlord to ensure that power was able to be reconnected.

My understanding is the tenant chooses the power company and organises an account (including covering any regular account fees), I cannot then check their account to make sure they are paying it just like I cannot check yours so have no idea what state it is in, the account holder gives final reading to their power company when tenancy ends and they move on.

In my scenario the power was cut two days before new tenants move in forcing another $70 charge, the only reason that charge is there is because the last tenant is a bad debtor, beyond myself or the new tenants control.

edit: I guess to me the logical approach in this scenario would be that the power is being disconnected over a bad debt so the fee should be charged at that point onto the bad debtors account.

richms

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#1582131 28-Jun-2016 16:42

The disconnection fee will be on their account which they will be getting chased for. The connection will not be as that is something that the new retailer has to pay the lines company for.

The property managers we have were quite clear that there has to be power available on the day that the new tennants move in, as electricity and water are required items, just like you have to ensure that they start with a decent amount in the water tank if you are on tank water.

Richard rich.ms

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allio

885 posts

Ultimate Geek

#1582168 28-Jun-2016 17:00

The party who is morally most responsible for paying the fee is the previous tenant. I suspect that practically is a different matter. If you feel like they'd pay it if asked nicely, or if you want to take them to the Tenancy Tribunal to recover it, then go for it. Sounds like that'd be a waste of time and effort though.

If the previous tenant won't pay, then as the landlord, you're going to have to suck it up and pay it.

There is no way you should be asking your new tenants to pay this fee. You wouldn't ask a new tenant to pay to fix damage caused by a previous tenant. This is no different. Your old tenants have left your house with a defect which you must remedy before new tenants move in.

DrDee

269 posts

Ultimate Geek

#1582202 28-Jun-2016 17:24

allio:

The party who is morally most responsible for paying the fee is the previous tenant. I suspect that practically is a different matter. If you feel like they'd pay it if asked nicely, or if you want to take them to the Tenancy Tribunal to recover it, then go for it. Sounds like that'd be a waste of time and effort though.

If the previous tenant won't pay, then as the landlord, you're going to have to suck it up and pay it.

There is no way you should be asking your new tenants to pay this fee. You wouldn't ask a new tenant to pay to fix damage caused by a previous tenant. This is no different. Your old tenants have left your house with a defect which you must remedy before new tenants move in.

I totally agree and will be paying.

I guess my point is that the power company knows why it disconnected (bad debt) but still puts the charge onto the next connection rather than the last, unless they have zero intention of chasing up the bad debt. I had a power company representative confirm that they know this, but I bet they never tell any new customers what that extra re-connection fee is for.

tripp

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#1582230 28-Jun-2016 18:29

We had something like this at our old place

About a month after moving I got an email from the old landlord saying the power was disconnected and I needed to pay to get it reconnected.

We transferred the power when we moved from the old place to the new one. Told him that it was not my issue if he did not sort out power between tenants.

KrazyKid

1238 posts

Uber Geek

#1582258 28-Jun-2016 19:04

When I moved into a house without power connected last year I negotiated the power company to pay the connection cost in return for me signing with them.

Aredwood

3885 posts

Uber Geek

#1582356 28-Jun-2016 21:06

You might as well claim for the cost of the reconnection
As you will have to anyway to claim the rest of the bond. You did originally lodge the bond with the bond centre I take it?

Wheelbarrow01

1725 posts

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Chorus

#1582396 29-Jun-2016 00:58

DrDee:

djtOtago:

Talk to a different power company.

There is no rule saying you or your next tenant have to reconnect using the current power company.

I think no matter where we go there will be a re-connection fee now :(

After talking to a power representative about this a bit further it only happens if the house is new, or if the power is disconnected over debt. So anybody/everybody who has ever paid a connection fee at any time (other than for a new house) has to realise the only reason they are paying it is because the previous bill payer at that property is a bad debtor.

I wonder how much money power companies have generated out of making new customers pay because of a previous customers debt?

Not true - for safety reasons the power is only left on at a vacant property for a short period of time (a week or two) after an occupant vacates and settles their account. As you state, this is a courtesy to the incoming occupant, but if for some reason the new occupant does not move in within that timeframe, or if they fail to have the power hooked up in their name, the supply will then be fully cut off by the network owner as a safety measure. After that point, anybody who wants the power on at that property will need to pay the reconnection charge.

And, as is the case with phone services, it is the network owner that levies the reconnection fee - not the retailer (they just pass it on).

The views expressed by me are not necessarily those of my employer Chorus NZ Ltd

DrDee

269 posts

Ultimate Geek

#1582472 29-Jun-2016 10:13

Wheelbarrow01:

DrDee:

djtOtago:

Talk to a different power company.

There is no rule saying you or your next tenant have to reconnect using the current power company.

I think no matter where we go there will be a re-connection fee now :(

After talking to a power representative about this a bit further it only happens if the house is new, or if the power is disconnected over debt. So anybody/everybody who has ever paid a connection fee at any time (other than for a new house) has to realise the only reason they are paying it is because the previous bill payer at that property is a bad debtor.

I wonder how much money power companies have generated out of making new customers pay because of a previous customers debt?

Not true - for safety reasons the power is only left on at a vacant property for a short period of time (a week or two) after an occupant vacates and settles their account. As you state, this is a courtesy to the incoming occupant, but if for some reason the new occupant does not move in within that timeframe, or if they fail to have the power hooked up in their name, the supply will then be fully cut off by the network owner as a safety measure. After that point, anybody who wants the power on at that property will need to pay the reconnection charge.

And, as is the case with phone services, it is the network owner that levies the reconnection fee - not the retailer (they just pass it on).

That may be the case but it is irrelevant in this situation as the power company told me they disconnected because of the bad debt.

DrDee

269 posts

Ultimate Geek

#1582475 29-Jun-2016 10:15

tripp:

We had something like this at our old place

About a month after moving I got an email from the old landlord saying the power was disconnected and I needed to pay to get it reconnected.

We transferred the power when we moved from the old place to the new one. Told him that it was not my issue if he did not sort out power between tenants.

If you didn't transfer power because you owed the power company money and decided that just bailing on the debt was the best option, would you think that being charged for the re-connection fee was justified?

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