The Ontario government intends to enact regulations to safeguard renters who have been notified that they must begin paying for power in their residences. These guidelines are not yet enacted into law. If tenants agree to pay for power today, they may be ignored after they become law.
Is it legal for my landlord to charge me for electricity?
There is no limit to how much rent a landlord can ask for in advance, but it is illegal to call extra expenses rent in advance.
If your landlord provides these services, they can still charge you for gas, electricity, and water. They can’t charge you more than the supplier charges them.
Is a landlord in Ontario liable for a tenant’s utility bills?
The burden lies on the renter if the landlord has written into their rental agreements that tenants are responsible for scheduling and paying utility bills for a unit. Tenants who do not pay their utilities, such as electricity and water, may get warnings, financial fines, or even have their services terminated. When payments are not paid, private utility firms must notify tenants in advance, and they must give notice before disconnecting or terminating services.
In Ontario, may a landlord turn off utilities?
It is against the law for your landlord to disconnect or interfere with any essential service. Hot or cold water, fuel, electricity, natural gas, and heat are all examples of this. Meals and care services follow the same rule.
If your landlord is responsible for paying for any of these services, they must not allow the service to be switched off due to a late payment.
Before you apply to the LTB
If a critical service has been cut or your landlord is threatening to stop services, you may be able to resolve the issue by calling your landlord or attempting these procedures first. You can also contact the Rental Housing Enforcement Unit (RHEU), a government agency that can assist you in restoring your service. A letter from a lawyer, community legal clinic, or student legal aid society could persuade your landlord to restore service.
If that fails, you can file a complaint with the Landlord and Tenant Board (LTB). The LTB has the authority to require your landlord to restore service. Because an LTB order functions similarly to a court order, it can be used when other methods have failed.
The LTB can also order your landlord to compensate you for any losses or harm you have suffered as a result of their acts.
To get the LTB to hear your case swiftly, you’ll need to take the proper measures. You’ll also need to produce evidence to the LTB that there’s a problem.
Time limit
If the service has already been restored and you are just seeking compensation, you should contact the LTB within one year of the service being cut off. The LTB can only help you with problems that occurred one year prior to your application.
Is it possible for a landlord to make you pay for cleaning?
It’s difficult enough moving house without having to worry about cleaning up after yourself. Leaving your former house in a shambles as a tenant, on the other hand, can be a costly mistake. If your landlord is unhappy with the state in which you left the home, you may lose some, if not all, of your tenancy deposit, which could cost you up to 1,000. Cleaning is the most prevalent reason for deposit deductions, with about 29 percent of UK tenants losing their deposits each year.
Keeping you safe from COVID-19 with Kiwi Movers’ expert cleaning
People who want to go home during the COVID-19 outbreak can, according to government standards, as long as they follow safety practices and procedures. This involves frequently washing your hands and, whenever possible, keeping at least two meters away from persons who are not family members.
Another key rule to follow, for both tenants and landlords, is to properly clean your property before allowing someone else to move in. According to current studies, hygiene is one of the most efficient ways to stop the transmission of Coronavirus, which can remain on diverse surfaces for up to several days.
With a focus on offering a thorough and detailed cleaning service, we hope to prevent COVID-19 from spreading throughout the property, keeping you, your family, and future tenants safe.
Is it possible for a landlord to be held accountable for unpaid utility bills?
Normally, no. Landlords are not accountable for unpaid bills left over by renters as long as the bill is in the tenant’s name and it is indicated in the leasing agreement that tenants are responsible for utilities.
However, if you find yourself in this difficult situation as a landlord, there are several precautions you should take to protect yourself.
- When a new tenant moves in, always notify the local government. You will need to submit the names of the new tenants as well as the old tenants’ contact information so that they can contact you if necessary.
- Notify the property’s energy suppliers of any tenancy changes (this includes gas, electricity and water)
- Encourage new renters to update their utility invoices with their new names as soon as feasible.
- Keep a record of the meter readings at the beginning and conclusion of each tenancy for the utility companies.
- Make sure your leasing agreement expressly indicates that the tenant is responsible for utility bills.
- Keep a signed copy of the tenancy agreement somewhere safe and easy to find.
Who is responsible for paying the electricity bill among the tenants?
When a property is vacant between tenancies, landlords are usually expected to pay utility bills. If a landlord is in control of an HMO, he or she may choose to pay the utility bills directly if the property is rented out by bedroom. The landlord would include the expense in each tenant’s monthly rent in this situation (split accordingly).
If the relevant names on the utility accounts were not updated when new tenants moved in, landlords may be held liable for utility bills. Due to the fact that landlords are responsible for paying utility bills during vacancies, the former tenant’s name should be substituted with the landlord’s until a new renter moves in. To prevent being hounded for payments they don’t owe, landlords should amend the relevant utility information as soon as the new renter moves in.
While tenants may be responsible for changing utility names, having the landlord oversee the transition may alleviate any confusion and give them piece of mind. When a renter incorrectly names the landlord on utility bills, the landlord can be relieved of any payments if adequate documentary evidence of the tenant’s occupancy is presented to the local council and the energy supplier.
What should you do if a tenant fails to pay their rent?
If outstanding utility bills are registered in the tenants’ names, I wouldn’t be concerned. This has occurred to me a few times, and it’s a simple fix.
Remember that overdue utility payments are the responsibility of the account holder, not the property (s). The only reason my situation was tense this time was that I was still the account holder.
If your tenant has vacated with unpaid bills and is the account holder, all you have to do is notify the utility companies, and they will stop sending bills to your home. They’ll almost certainly ask for the tenant’s forwarding address, but don’t worry if you don’t have one (many landlords don’t in this situation).
While I’m not sure why, I know a lot of eccentric landlords who don’t bother getting a written contract in place. It’s simply incredible.
- Even if your renters have moved out, keep your leasing agreements. They can be particularly handy in situations like these.
- As previously said, I cannot guarantee that all service providers follow the same policy! But I’m presuming perhaps stupidly that most do! So long as you can show that your tenant was the occupant during the bill’s validity period, they should be held responsible.
- When new renters move in, double-check that all of their accounts have been moved to them. I made the error of not double-checking, but I will now double-check with the service providers directly. Don’t rely on your tenant to do it!