BOB CUMMINS writes:
I am a puzzled resident of Kempton Park. Just how does the law work?
As an owner of a property I rent out I cannot cut off the electricity should the bill not be up to date. Yet the tenant, who has no responsibility, can go the metro and without the approval of the owner make arrangements to “pay off” the bill.
The tenant then disappears and the owner remains liable. This is nonsense! The metro made the arrangement and should collect the outstanding from the tenant.
My ex-tenant, who has vanished, ran up a bill of over R36 000 an the lights are not cut off by the metro. How can I as owner be held liable for this amount when the metro did not do their job and cut off the power?
I have brought this to the attention of the metro on a number of occasions but it appears the senior management sit in their ivory towers and do not care one iota.
Despite the municipal law stating I as owner remain liable, why should I have to pay for the metro’s lack of service and for an arrangement the metro made with the tenant without the owner’s knowledge?
Someone somewhere was bribed not to cut off the power. If I am a week late, I get final demand notices from the metro.
It’s about time this type of incident and the “arrangement” agreement by the metro was investigated.
Themba Gadebe, metro spokesman, replies:
Certain issues raised by the complainant with reference to his previous tenant were addressed in a previous media enquiry dated around May 2013 for an incident that occurred in 2012.
Council proved to the complainant and his legal representative at the time that regular disconnections occurred to the property. There, however, were various illegal incidents whereby the electricity was illegally reconnected. Due to the various incidents of illegal reconnection council removed the complete electrical connection.
Council records further indicate there was various subsequent successful disconnections affected to the property for arrears balances and reconnection only occurred once the required settlement amount for reconnection was paid.
No arrangements were entered with the tenant nor any irregularities could be found with these subsequent actions either. Council is therefore unclear as to the complainant’s comments that electricity was not disconnected and matters’ relating to bribery as the facts contradicts the complainant’s observations.The complainant further alleges that council entered into unauthorised arrangements with the tenant without the authority of the owner, which resulted in monitory losses to him. Proper investigations of any and all arrangements were done and the only recorded arrangement on council’s system was an arrangement entered into in October 2012.
The source documents attached to the acknowledgement of debt contract as proof of authority was that of the complainant’s wife, together with other relevant documentation, confirming authority to enter into such agreement.
At no point was a service agreement entered into with any party except with the complainant therefore dealings with the tenant, if any, was minimised to furnishing of proof of payment once disconnected.
The Constitutional Court affirmed the legal principle that the owner and tenant be jointly held liable for debt incurred on a property with rulings on this matter. It is further advisable that owners, when renting out their property, take a more proactive stance in conjunction with council as to any dealings on their property and possible unsettled debt.
Council must reiterate that illegal requests by owners to disconnect electricity when the account is not in arrears, due to possible outstanding rent or any other reasons except for outstanding balances, will not be processed as such is not in line with council’s licensee regulatory conditions.
Other legal remedies are available to owners to address disputes between owner and tenant and council cannot be placed in a position where it be deemed that council is colluding with any one party to infringe on another’s rights.
All owners further need to note that council requires an authority letter from the owner, together with proof of owner identity, completed on the prescribed official application form, before entering into any arrangement with their tenant. On the said form the owner may stipulate additional requirements in addition to council’s requirements for any agreement with the tenant, ie period allowed for arrangement, down payment required, etc to ensure the inclusion of the owner.
