You could be liable for your tenants water debt from 1st January 2015 unless you act!
From 1st January 2015 there will be an obligation on all landlords with properties in the Welsh Water and Dee Valley Water areas to share certain information about their tenants with their water company. The majority of properties affected are in Wales, but these Water Authority areas also cover parts of Cheshire, Merseyside, Herefordshire, Shropshire and Gloucestershire.
If you fall under the Welsh Water or Dee Valley Water areas, and you do not notify the relevant company of your tenants details you will become jointly-liable for the occupants’ water debt. Please note these obligations DO NOT include the Severn Trent authority areas.
You will be under obligation to notify the relevant company of the,
· full name
· date of birth (if you hold it)
· the date the occupancy began for each of the occupants within the property (as well as obviously the property address).
For existing occupants, you will have to do this by the 21st January 2015 , and for new occupants within 21 days of them moving in or their tenancy or contractual arrangement beginning (whichever is sooner).
We recommend that you do this via the designated Landlordtap (www.landlordtap.com). Once you have registered you will be able to follow the on-screen instructions to enable you to provide the relevant information to the Water Authority. We believe that ‘landlord Tap’ will be live from 22nd December 2014.
For more details please read the full guidance on the here: https://www.rla.org.uk/landlord/guides/liability-for-water-payments.shtml
For water company boundaries click here:
http://www.ofwat.gov.uk/consumerissues/watercompanies/map/
Policy Team,
Residential Landlords Association
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Member Since July 2013 - Comments: 264 - Articles: 1
12:49 PM, 12th December 2014, About 11 years ago
because of data protection we have no access to the account but are responsible, sounds very one sided, interesting to see if such one sided laws would be upheld in court.
Member Since July 2013 - Comments: 1434
12:51 PM, 12th December 2014, About 11 years ago
Ensure that your tenant has given you permission to do this, otherwise you might fall foul of the Data Protection Act.
Member Since August 2013 - Comments: 883
2:54 PM, 12th December 2014, About 11 years ago
I believe that the Data Protection Act does not apply if there is a legal obligation to provide the info.
Member Since July 2013 - Comments: 192 - Articles: 1
4:34 PM, 12th December 2014, About 11 years ago
Reply to the comment left by “Romain ” at “12/12/2014 – 14:54“:
I suspect you are correct and would go as far as saying that a lot of people, the authorities included, hide behind the Data Protection Act to withhold lots of information that is perfectly allowable to be passed on in the correct circumstances.
Member Since July 2013 - Comments: 264 - Articles: 1
4:51 PM, 12th December 2014, About 11 years ago
it never works to protect us, it is just a hassle, look at how the DVLA sell our data to private parking firms without our permission, how can that be. It is just a total waste of time in my opinion.
Member Since September 2014 - Comments: 277
5:34 PM, 12th December 2014, About 11 years ago
1st they do us for c/tax on empty property, now it’s water, it’ll be gas and electricity next. Having said that, my last tenant never reg’d with the electricity supplier and fiddled it all the time he was there! Never paid the rent either, wrecked the place, hung on to bitter end (bailiffs) and then dissappeared. They get away it. The laws are ridiculous. Write to the housing minister ‘Mark Harper’ as I have and give him something to do.
Member Since September 2014 - Comments: 277
5:41 PM, 12th December 2014, About 11 years ago
The system stinks. The authorities can’t get money out of the ………… tenants, so they look to us!
Member Since July 2013 - Comments: 264 - Articles: 1
5:49 PM, 12th December 2014, About 11 years ago
how do we avoid being landed with a bill? anyone have a solution?
Member Since September 2014 - Comments: 277
6:01 PM, 12th December 2014, About 11 years ago
Reply to the comment left by “Alan Loughlin” at “12/12/2014 – 17:49“:
Yes, ‘Guy Fawks’ .
Member Since July 2013 - Comments: 264 - Articles: 1
6:02 PM, 12th December 2014, About 11 years ago
maybe not a bad idea