Selling rental property, utilities question

[Komori]

We are selling a rental property, tenants are leaving before we sell. Probably have a gap of a few months.
We are with Yuno, not sure about tenants.
Do I take over their account with zero balance?
Or need to set up new gas/electric accounts and incur breakage fee?

Anyone ever in this situation

 

[JohnFK]

Before the tenants leave ask them who they are contracted with for gas/electric. When they leave read both meters ( take a photograph also as this will be date stamped). They are responsible for payment up to these readings. Simplest for you then is to contact their energy provider on the day they leave, explain you are the landlord and ask for both utilities to be transferred into your name. Provide them with the same meter readings for opening your new account. You don't have to enter a new 12 month contract. Explain to them that you are selling the property and don't want to enter a time bound contract. The unit rates that you will pay will be higher but you will use very little energy until the property is sold and you will avoid incurring a fixed breakage fee when you handover the keys to the new owner.

 

[Luternau]

You don't have to enter a new 12 month contract... .........and you will avoid incurring a fixed breakage fee when you handover the keys to the new owner....

I recently asked BG about this. They advised no break fee applies unless you switch to a new provider. Eg. You have gas heating and install a heat pump, and disconnect gas while in contract. No break fee as no new gas supply contract is entered into. I assume the same applies for electricity and gas if you sell and do not take out a contract in your name for the same address/meter supply number.

 

[Leo]

Or need to set up new gas/electric accounts and incur breakage fee?

Always set up a new account, The tenants need to cancel their contract and deal with any consequences there. You shouldn't be liable for a break-fee on someone else's contract.

 

[Dr Strangelove]

Simplest for you then is to contact their energy provider on the day they leave, explain you are the landlord and ask for both utilities to be transferred into your name.

Don’t do this. The tenants’ responsibilities are their own responsibilities and you are not their minder.

Note the meter readings on day tenancy ends. Take photos and get tenants to sign noting the readings and the dates.

Then pick a plan from any provider which has no break fee. From memory these are a bit more expensive per KWh.

 

[Dr Strangelove]

I write as I used to be a landlord and at the end of a contract the letting agent “helpfully” wrote to the tenants’ electricity provider to set up an account in my name. The rate was among the worst on the market. By the time I learned about this a week later the electricity provider refused to refund me despite my protestations that I hadn’t entered into a contract with them.

 

[aristotle]

When I sold my rented property my tenant didn’t want to close their electricity account, saying they had a dispute about a €400 overcharge.

I just rang up the provider and set up a new account after telling them I was selling etc. I was surprised it was so easy to do without any sort of consent from the tenant. They said they would be only chasing the tenant for the money they said they were owed.

House sold anyway and never any issue about it.