Invoice in joint names but court order saying one person is not responsible

[Blushingm]

I own a property with a residents charge attached.

As part of my divorce it states I am solely responsible for any fees and charges related to the property.

Ive asked for this invoice to be made out to me and not me & my ex husband as it is my bill not his.

Ive provided them with a copy of the court order but they say they can’t remove his name off the invoice now or for future years.

Am I right in saying I don’t want to pay it if his name is on the invoices? I am happy to pay it if the invoice is made out to me? He has no financial interest as stated in the court order though his name is still on the deed (this is stuck with an issue at land Registry at the moment)

Utility bills are different to residential charges. They are made out to whoever has entered into the contract with utility provider. Residential charges are made out to the owner of the property. As he is still on the deeds, that is you and your ex. The invoice is correctly made out. The court order is irrelevant. You are both still jointly liable to the management company. You will not succeed in getting the invoice changed.

If you do not pay, the management company can get CCJs against both you and your ex. Your court order will not stop them getting a CCJ against your ex. However, your ex would then be able to take legal action against you for failing to comply with the financial order.

The only way you will get your ex's name off this invoice is by getting him off the deeds. Refusing to pay will put you in breach of both the contract with the management company and the financial order in your divorce.

It doesn't work the way it does in your head, argue till you are blue in the face i would be extremely surprised they will change it just because you want them too

Keep asking to have the name changed but keep paying the bills. You can
easily prove if necessary what has happened; keep the correspondence , the bank statements and the court order handy.

You have the information that he shouldn't be on the bill, you have the information that you paid it not him, you have the information that the change in ownership is just stuck in a delay with land registry. What more do you need to cover your self? Get a solicitor to write a covering letter to explain why this is only your bill although in joint names if you really feel it necessary, or write one yourself.

@prh47bridgeis correct. You are confusing two things: who is liable to the management company to pay the charge (both of you) and who is responsible between you two for meeting that obligation (just you, per the court order). The court order is the agreement between you and your ex as to who will meet those third party liabilities, it does not change what those liabilities to the third parties are.

The management company is not going to take him off the invoice as a) he is, as a matter of contract, as responsible as you are and b) that would mean they would be impacting their recourse to him if payment isn’t made, which is a right they have that is unaffected by the court order. It would be illogical for them to agree to do so andI would not be advising the management company to agree to your request if they were my client.

Focus instead on ensuring you get a receipt that makes it clear that you paid the invoice.

Is he still on the lease?

Just write on the invoice that it is solely paid by yourself and sign and date it. Send them a copy. Matter resolved!

His name is on the deeds so they’re billing you both. You pay it, you have evidence that you paid it. He can’t claim he paid. You’re being difficult and stupid for no reason.

The charge is a yearly charge not a one off

It’s not a lease it’s a freehold

I’m not refusing to pay - I’ve paid for the last 8 years whilst separated but the divorce is finalised now

But the deeds haven't been amended. Therefore it's correct that the charge is for both owners as per the deeds. Once they're updated, you can have him removed from the invoice.

As of the date of the invoice, who was the legal entity in ownership of the property.

Also, you’re overthinking this.

I’m not refusing to pay - I’ve paid for the last 8 years whilst separated but the divorce is finalised now

But the change of deeds isn't finalised so the invoice can't be sent to only one of you.

What is the downside to paying it?

You are responsible for the payment anyway and if it's ever challenged in future you will be able to provide proof of payment.

But it has been explained to you by multiple people, including lawyers, that this is not relevant. If you are not prepared to pay the invoice because they are addressing the invoice to the two people who are (regardless of the court order) the two people who owe the obligation to them to pay it then yes, you are refusing to pay this invoice.

But he is still on the deeds. You’re not going to get your way until he is off the deeds. They will bill you both. But IT DOESN’T MATTER. You have a court order saying that you pay it, you will have proof that the funds came from you. It gives your ex literally no hold over the property, he can’t get anything. It doesn’t do anything to you, at all.

In your OP you said you don't want to pay it if his name is on the invoice. My point is that the management company is almost certainly not going to take his name of the invoice, but you have to pay. You cannot use your divorce or the financial order as a way of saying you won't pay if his name is on the invoice.

This is so straightforward op - until he’s off the deeds, of course the invoice will be addressed to him.

It is concerning that you genuinely seem to think that you should be able to wave a divorce court order and override this.

I don’t want to pay it if his name is on the invoices?

but cool with living in a property with his name on the deeds?!

OP: you have come on a free website for free advice.You have been given sound advice. Not only that but it has been explained to you in plain English why the bill is in joint names, and why that does not mean you should not pay until they bow to your demands. At least acknowledge the time people have given to help you.

It must be hard divorcing someone like this OP. Illogical. But bloody minded!

Who does not paying it penalise? If it’s you and could affect your credit rating, then pay it.

Your OP asks “Am I right in saying I don’t want to pay it if his name is on the invoices?”

The normal meaning when people say they don’t want to pay in this context is that they are considering refusing to pay.

If you aren’t considering refusing but are really just asking if it’s okay to not want to pay - that’s not a legal question. The law does not dictate what your desire must be. If you don’t want to do it you are correct in saying that you don’t want to do it. You will still need to, though.