Landlord says this is my bill to pay?? Photo attached

[LJM29]

I moved out of the house in mid April. Landlord has sent a very passive aggressive email with this bill attached that he’s received today. It’s in his name. He says I owe this bill and need to arrange paying it out of my bond that he sent me back. He says he doesn’t expect these bills. Looking at the dates it’s a yearly water bill charge for April 2024-March 2025 but I’ve moved out. How can it me that’s liable for this charge? I can’t make sense of it? Who is right??

Actually if the property is empty the LL has to pay. Most water companies charge a standing charge regardless of if anyone is living there. I'm a LL and I've had to pay for 2 months while empty because I was waiting for a painter and carpet fitter to be available before new tenants moved in.

Your ex-landlord is deluded. How on earth can they think you are responsible for bills after the tenancy agreement has ended!?

Agree with PP who bas calculated that you owe £21 to cover the last few days of your tenancy.

If I were the landlord, I don't think I would bother collecting this amount.

It's not on a meter. If it was it wouldn't be a fixed price for the year ahead.
So now the bill is in his name, as PP said, if empty he needs to call the water Co and tell them its vacant, but charges may still apply - hence why it's better to be on a meter.

That's not your bill to pay. It's the estimate for the next 12 months in the same was as you are told in advance what your council tax bill will be for the year.

He's an idiot and had read the bill incorrectly!

Yep him you are liable for 17 days in April, but he needs to cover the rest based on when you moved out. He probably misread the dates. I would have the water company resend as 2 bills, she pay them over the phone at the time, because that gives you evidence of payment to send with your message.

He’s not read it properly and thinks it’s 2023/24

I had a landlord like this 🤣 tried charging me the year ahead council tax bill. Explained to him I wasn't going to be paying council tax for a property I don't live in anymore and that it's the next tenants job to pay it. He wasn't happy and tried to lie about why it's mine until he gave up when he realised he couldn't spin it

You need to discuss this with the water company first, not the landlord.

Ring the water company and explain the situation saying you want to double check you paid everything already to cover the period you were in that property. If there is a small payment left then settle that and ask them for confirmation that your account has been closed and settled.

Then get back to the landlord explaining what you have done and that any bill since your leaving date is his responsibility until he finds new tenants. Then stop corresponding with him.

End of story.

I got asked to pay the council tax of a property I never moved in to once.

I had been planning to move in but things fell through and I never did. I never once had access
to the property. Landlord sent me the council tax bill!

This - did you not read the meters before moving out?

Does he realise that is is for the future, and not last year? If he does, then why does he think you'll pay for water to an address that you don't live in ?! He just needs to contact them.

Not everyone has a water meter.

There's some real chancers out there...makes you wonder how many people would pay this sort of thing 😬

So what date did you tell the water company you were no longer responsible. It should have been April 17th as that's when your tenancy ended. Did you tell them 31 March? Offer 25 quid for your share of April.

@LJM29 are you with Severn Trent? It looks familiar to my bills. They send you the amount for the year ahead, whether a prediction for a meter or the exact amount if you sre on rates. There would have been the same for 23/24 and you would have paid it during the year.

Your landlord can speak with the water company and they will explain it to him. If you contacted the water company with the date you left it is it likely they have already billed you and you have paid for that anyway, if it was 2 weeks into the new billing year for example.

He obviously can't read and/or is a bit dim. Offer him £20 to cover the period of that bill that you were there and tell him to swivel for the rest of it.

There's nothing he can do. If he withholds your bond, report him to the ombudsman. If he tries to use that bill as his reason, they will laugh at him.

Ignore him. Let him waste time arguing with the water company
It's in his name so he's liable.

Your Security deposit should be held securely in a deposit protection scheme so if he wants to keep any her has to apply to them and explain why so I veyr much doubt that will be happening

Have you taken your name of the account at the water board? If not, do that, give them the date your tenancy ended and have true bill sent to your new property. Pay it, send evidence of that to landlord - get on with life.

Did you rent through an agency?

This bill is for the year ahead by the look of it (I'm not sure why they expect payment up front)

How strange ... paying a water bill a year in advance? That can't be right?

I would send him one further email explaining that these charges are

1. For the period where you are not living in the property
2. In his name
3. Not liiable to be paid by the previous tenant

I would direct him to take this up directly with the water company if he requires further clarification.

Then I would not correspond any further on the matter.