My hot water bill was 20x the usual cost, i think because the hot water system broke.
Who is liable for the excess bill?
I rent the place.
If Renting and Hot Water System Breaks Causing High Hot Water Gas Bill Who Is Liable?
SpicyStew on 18/02/2023 - 13:40
Comments
after I received the hot water bill
Then you are responsible for the bill
I disagree. I think it's still on the landlord.
@cookie2: For something they haven't been notified of? It could have been fixed, then no ridiculous bill. If they weren't given the option to fix it, it's on op.
@brendanm: I don't mean that the landlord is at fault. I just mean that I feel the home owner is ultimately responsible.
@cookie2: They are not. Op is responsible for reporting issues to the landlord. If the landlord does not fix that issue quickly, then landlord should pay. They shouldn't have to pay if they haven't been given a chance to fix whatever issue is happening. If op has actually had a bill 20x higher than usual, something pretty obvious should be happening.
@ThithLord: What? I didn't suggest op should pay to fix the got water. In addition, you don't pay for electricity/gas/water in a hotel, op has a rental contract which states that they pay for those utilities. Not sure what a hotel has to do with anything at all, bizarre reference.
This is all you need to know
"i think because the hot water system broke."
If hot water system breaks you get no hot water.
Its as simple as that.Id ignore OPs speculation and move on.
How do you know it's caused by the "broken" hot water system?
How else do you get CoMpEnSaTiOn if it wasn't the HWS?
i heard the local circus is taking new applications ur welcome
You came on here to post this garbage rather than answer actual questions about your situation. I feel sorry for your landlord.
@brendanm: Sorry to hurt your feelings.
Real estate agents nor utilities companies do not work on weekends so I must wait till Monday for further investigations.
I'm appreciating all the sensible comments unlike yours."I think" does not necessarily mean "I know".
Stop assuming. Making an ass out of you and me, both.
i think because the hot water system broke
Do you have anything concrete to back up that thought?
What does OP mean by "broke"
Broke means its not working so NO HOT WATER!
No it doesn't, have had a hot water system that was broken and would constantly heat up water. Cant remember what the issue was but yeah
High gas bill? Check the meter reading, it was probably an estimate that was way off and not an actual meter read. Or the previous "read" was an estimate that was significantly lower than actual and they've just caught up now with an actual meter read.
How exactly did the HWS break? Gas or electric? What are your bill readouts?
Even if there is actually a fault - which isn't yet proven - you are still liable to pay as the customer. If you get any compensation from the landlord it'll be a goodwill gift and not because they owe it to you.
Since it's very hard to put 20x the energy into a contained system without causing damage (e.g. an explosion of steam) I'm going to assume a metering issue foremost and not an actual fault until proven otherwise
How exactly did the HWS break? Gas or electric?
What's your best guess given the title of the thread?
It's a fair question, even if it's stated in the title.
"My hot water bill was 20X"
Hot water bill or gas bill?
Is it actually a gas powered HWS?
What else uses gas in the house?
Exactly
People should ignore such "Speculative": posts
What else uses gas in the house?
The hydroponic heaterS.
You. If you just kept letting it go, and never bothered to let the landlord know- if it was a really obvious fault. Was it a really obvious fault to you? Or did everything look normal- until you got the bill?
Water leaks?
My hot water bill was 20x the usual cost, i think because the hot water system broke.
You think, so as in you don't really know what caused it. Is the hot water broken or not?
Who is liable for the excess bill?
No one really, as you hadn't advised the landlord of an issue to 'fix'. Once you advise them, they on the NEXT bill you might have some recourse.
Do you have any other gas appliances, bedsides HWS?
Are all of the reading on previous bills real readings or estimates?
Have you checked for any water leaks?
Do any of the HW taps drip?
Refer to this article from Consumer Affairs Victoria (OP is in VIC)
In short:
Renters should keep a record of their attempts to contact their rental provider.
The rental provider must organise and pay for all repairs if they are not the renter’s fault.
Regarding the excessive bill, you need to speak to the landlord and come to an agreement. Hopefully you deal with a rental agent that can act as a liason between you and the landlord and provide rights and responsibilities to both parties.
Come to an agreement that is satisfactory to both parties, don't piss off the landlord with unrealistic expectations especially if they have been looking after you regarding rental prices and everything else as they can easily up your rent or worse kick you out and put someone else in there +20% of what you pay - During the current climate people are desperate to put a roof over their heads (eg. families with kids)
If you notified the land lord immediately and they didn’t fix it - landlord is liable.
If you did NOT notify the landlord and they had no opportunity to fix it - you’re liable.The landlord is also responsible for ensuring their appliances are in working condition and maintained (but some things are hard to know about if there’s no visual signs of damage)
For instance, I have to ensure my hot water tank is in good condition so it doesn’t explode and flood my tenants apartment. A faulty one would be a similar issue I’d imagine. Similar with the hoses under the sink (mine had nearly rusted through, glad I checked!)
If the landlord has no evidence of maintenance of the hot water tank, and it’s several years old, they should have had it checked earlier I’d say.
As a landlord, if I had not had someone inspect the water tank for any visible issues or malfunctions and it was several years old, I’d expect to at least compensate the tenant somehow. I wouldn’t want to pay for the whole thing, but I’d expect to cover part of it
What's a hot water bill? Is that because you have a gas bill and only use gas for hot water?
Is your water bill also high?
Or do you not get a water bill as a renter?
The apartment I was living in previously had a separately metered gas bill for the hot water, so it does happen. Mind you that was a complex where the water heating was central and a body corporate issue, so cleaelt doesnt apply in this instance
The problem might be with the relief valve on the water heater. Sometimes they malfunction and all your hot water goes down the overflow pipe.
Therefore your hot water heater is continuously working ( using gas).
Check this regularly and inform landlord if there’s a problem.I've never understood why renters always use the victim card. no Landlord is a kind reader.. if U didn't report a dodgy hot water system, then take responsibility for the high bill.
What’s the point in posting and not replying to many comments? It always depends on when it happened but it sounds like the landlord fixed it as soon as you informed them, so the onus is on you.
Real estate agents nor utilities companies do not work on weekends so I must wait till Monday for further investigations.
Comments are appreciated and I will take into consideration when the new week starts.Needy commenters, sheesh. :)
It’s between you and the utility company. Give more context next time and you won’t get these types of replies from most.
Legally I don't know the answer to your questions, but just thinking about it, this is my opinion:
If your hot water service was broken and you didn't notice it, then you can't really expect that the landlord would know either.
Your gas and electricity use is your own responsibility. You can monitor how much gas or electricity you are using by looking at your gas or electricity meter at any time you choose. I'm guessing that you didn't do that, which is why you didn't notice how much you were using until the bill came.
So in this particular scenario, you are the only person who had the opportunity to notice both the functioning of the hot water service, and the readings on your gas and electricity meter. So it seems doesn't seem fair to me that the landlord should pick up the tab when they had zero opportunity to do either of those things.
I understand that you don't want to pay this bill because it is very high, but I doubt that your landlord wants to pay it either for the same reason. And since the landlord had zero control over the situation, and you at least had some control over the situation (even if you didn't exercise that control), you are the person who is most responsible to pay the bill.
The landlord should of course fix or replace the hot water service as quickly as possible if it turns out to be broken though.
Legally, this may be the totally wrong answer. I am just thinking about it from my own perspective.
I hope this is helpful.
The landlord should be the one responsible for the cost of the repair if you didn't damage it yourself.
You are probably going to be responsible for the bill.
when did the landlord know about the defect?
.