Urgent Action Required Energy Australia "Deeming Rates"

funnysht on 13/08/2019 - 16:38
Last edited 13/08/2019 - 16:44

So i'm a landlord and the tenants moved out 3 months ago due to hail damage/ceiling leak. So the strat insurance paid to get the ceiling fixed extra. The tenant closed their account, but the elct still worked for a while and the builders may have used it.

Anyway i checked the mailbox (at the apartment) first time and got a few letters official looking from energy australia stating
to the occupant
address

urgent action required to avoid disonnection of your electricity.
On the right hand states the energy aust number 133466

But then on a different line states in larger bold numbers call 1300 135 863

The 2nd number i googled- not an official energy aust number, so i called this number up first and they said i had to pay for the elect based on 'deeming rates' and they need me to sign up for an account for me to pay the balance. They can't tell me up front how much the balance/meter is strangely.

I called the official EA number and they stated they have no account/meter at the address, they have no record of the NMI or meter number.

1) I'm happy to pay for it, but out of curiosity given strata needed to fix the ceiling, should they be paying for the elect.
2) I'm now thinking this is a scam so not going to pay - it sound like a scam but theres 4 letters are look official.
3) Will the new tenants have issues connecting their elect if it is actually 'disconnected'. After they left, i inspected the place once 1-2 weeks after they left and the lights worked so i think it was still connected, but now they're not working so probably officially 'disconnected'- i don't want the new tenants come and have trouble connecting the elct for week(s)

Cheers

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Comments

  • spackbace on 13/08/2019 - 16:46
    +1

    The 2nd number i googled- not an official energy aust number

    Your Googling is pretty bad then

    Second hit on this search

    • funnysht on 13/08/2019 - 16:52

      think i put spackebace between the numbers, i guess you didnt -__-

      • funnysht on 13/08/2019 - 16:54

        also assuming that number is true (according to the fb link) then why doesn't the offical number have any record of an account?

  • wendellX on 13/08/2019 - 16:51

    For (3) don't most electricity companies offer next business day connection for residential properties? I know AGL had a guarantee last time I moved.

    • funnysht on 13/08/2019 - 16:56

      tRUE but from what i've read when you move out (of apartments anyway) the elect account is closed but it isn't actually disconnected physcially as it takes too much effort to reconnect someone new. So if it hasnt then 1-2 days is possible but im wondering if it has physcially been disconnected it may take longer to reconnect

      • wendellX on 13/08/2019 - 17:17

        I think you're overthinking how difficult a disconnection is to undo. There would either be a single break at the meter, or at the pole if the meter was inaccessible (or you've been stealing power after disconnecting at the meter). I would still be expecting a quick turn around on a reconnection.

        • ssquid on 13/08/2019 - 19:31

          Depends which state too, OP is obviously not in VIC because it's all smart meters with remote-managed energization/de-energization; no tenants = no power.

  • dcep on 13/08/2019 - 16:53
    +6

    power bill ties to account holder

    you have no contract with them, just ignore

    tenants arrange their own electricity provider

  • HighAndDry on 13/08/2019 - 17:09
    +3

    I'd just ignore it - I mean - they need you to sign up for an account to bill you? Sounds like a good reason to just not sign up.

  • yoonibear on 13/08/2019 - 17:26
    +3

    IMO I'd ignore it - to the occupant means they don't know who's using electricity. You'll get these (our ones are titled to the occupier) when the tenant closes their account and to a new tenant opening a account. Depending on the amount, they'll just disconnect and once a new tenant moves in, they'll organise a reconnection.

    • funnysht on 13/08/2019 - 17:29
      +1

      yeah, im concerned about how long it may take for a reconnection though

      • Kangal on 13/08/2019 - 18:43

        Legitimate concern but don't be.
        You're going to be renting the place out after repairs. The next tenants will need to take a photo of the meter, organise a connection with an Electrical Company, where they'll send someone down from the company to turn the power on and check the meter, and then they will get billed accordingly for that first month/bill (pro-rata and monthly fee). It's not a difficult thing, the tenants will need to organise it before they move in, and they will know beforehand as they do the inspection.

        Energy Australia needs to chase down the old tenants and have them pay the remaining amount.

        If you sign up to pay for it, you are just asking for trouble. There have been instances, when the landlord pays and when they try to cancel they hit a roadblock, and the tenants end up getting hundreds/thousands of dollars free electricity. Which is great if you want to run some Crypto-mining rig or have an indoor greenhouse for your plants.

  • Typical16-bitEnjoyer on 13/08/2019 - 20:49
    -1

    Ok, so here's the facts for you.

    You have 2 options.

    1. If you don't want to pay, don't care about what occurs to the next tenant to move in, then don't pay. Ignore the letters. They 99.9% won't do anything, they 99.9% won't chase you (they don't know who you are unless you told them over the phone), and will just turn the power off. I've only really heard of them chasing commercial/industry building tenants/owners (ie. $10,000 electricity bills a month).

    2. If you do care about the next tenant to move in, then here it is.

    Under the NERL NSW (I'm more familar with the ERC in VIC so bear with me) this scenario is called a "deemed supply".

    The retailer the last tenant was using is paying for the electricity consumed at the premises and is being charged, in a convulated way, the majority of the "service/supply" charge you see on your bill from the distributor for your area (the guys who own and maintain the powerlines, poles, wires and infrastructure). This is termed "owning the billing rights". They are paying for it all so they have a right to charge someone for it.

    As you, your agent, or someone you've given explicit permission to (ie. Strata/Insurer) has been using the electricity at your property you are required to contact them, or any other retailer, to setup a billing account for that usage.

    You use the electricity (or gas), you're entering into a contract for the supply. Yep, it's law. It's considered deemed supply and basically, you use it, you are required to pay for it. For residential properties it's more puff and flexes than anything. They rarely chase anyone and just turn the power off.

    If you ignore the letters then they'll disconnect the power. They still hold the billing rights and won't release to another retailer until that usage it paid for, nor reconnect the power.

    Your tenant will move in and through sheer percentages are unlikely to call that exact same retailer to setup a billing account. That's just cause there's so many retailers.

    Then commences the shit fight between the retailers commences. Some retailers will do either A or B.

    A) Realise the billing rights aren't being released and wipe their hands of it. Too hard basket. They'll cancel the contract with the tenant. The tenant may or may not get power connected, they may or may not subsequently lose power. They'll probably move in and find the power isn't working and have to pay a hefty fee for the distributor to reconnect the power after hours. They might get one of the few nice retailers and actually explain the issue to the customer so they can call the retailer with the billing rights to resolve the issue. The tenant most definitely will have to deal with a lot of mail and phone calls with the retailer with the billing rights and endure a pain in the backside process.

    B) Realise the billing rights aren't being released and deal with a convoluted back office process to backdate reads, deal with the other retailer, obtain new reads and get your tenant onboard. This usually causes billing delays, billing errors, all sorts of issues for your new tenant. Retailer can and usually will require a copy of the Lease to prove the date they commenced occupation. Not a fun process.

    Please note this entire process above is due to the long elapse of time. Under 3-6 months no retailer cares. Sign up with anyone. Nobody bothers or cares. They write off a few weeks or a month of usage automatically. However, once that 3-6 month mark passes and their system triggers the "deemed supply" process, all of the above occurs and applies.

    So yeah. You have option 1 or 2 depending if you care about the tenant or not.

    • Typical16-bitEnjoyer on 14/08/2019 - 21:29

      Gotta love the random neg. Mr or Mrs Negger, please feel free to point out a single thing you believe is incorrect. It's all the truth.

  • brad1-8tsi on 14/08/2019 - 07:28

    If you had power going into the apartment and the cost seems reasonable just pay it.

    If you think it should come out of strata then ring them and ask them to pay it.

    Elec companies rarely physically disconnect the power. My place had power for the whole period between when the tenants moved out and the sale marketing process was happening and when i moved in after purchase.

    • funnysht on 14/08/2019 - 08:11

      they won't tell me how much it is until i create an account with them, they just say they need to create an account for someone to go and check the meter to determine how much has been used.

      phone number 2 says the meter exists, but when i call the official EA number- they have no record of having had a connection at the address, or even have that meter number.

      • Typical16-bitEnjoyer on 14/08/2019 - 11:41

        they won't tell me how much it is until i create an account with them

        Because the end date hasn't been determined yet. The amount is increasing every passing day.

        but when i call the official EA number

        Most retailers have a specific department to handle these scenarios. That's why it states in larger bold numbers call 1300 135 863

  • Love a bargain on 14/08/2019 - 13:53
    +1

    Let's take a step back.

    Your last tenant moved out and you are the occupant of the property right now. Utilities (electricity, gas, etc) are being consumed in your property in this interim period. (Even if not for the repair work, electricity is still used when you go in or when your agent is holding an inspection.) It only seems fair that you should pay for those usage.

    If you think the stata insurance should compensate you for the additional expense, you can negotiate for it to reimburse you. However, it doesn't negate the fact that you're responsible for paying the bills in the first place.

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