Pensioners claim tenant is R80k in arrears with council account

When considering renting out a property, there are a plethora of things to think about when setting up a clear and concise rental agreement.

However, what happens when a tenant occupying your property has neglected to pay the agreed-upon municipal accounts and you are suddenly left with an astronomical account to settle?

Norma le Blanc recently told the City Times a tenant in their Morehill home has racked up a municipal account of R80 000.

“We are pensioners in our 80s and have had our account handed over to the metro’s legal department due to his unpaid account,” said le Blanc.

“We suspect he is responsible for making illegal electricity connections. We reported the matter but nothing was done.”

The couple has applied and paid for a level three disconnection, which means that the permanent supply is removed from the property.

“This had little effect as the tenant is now running a generator yet still paying nothing towards the accumulated debt,” she said.

Ursula Spennato, the vice-chair of the RNS Group, cautions that according to the Ekurhuleni metro’s by-laws, landlords are always responsible for municipal services rendered to the property.

She further clarified that liability for municipal accounts falls solely on the shoulders of the property owners, therefore the only other course of action is to evict the tenant from the home and legally seek damages, in terms of accumulated accounts.

“When leasing a property landlords need to safeguard themselves and their assets by firstly calling in the services of a reputable estate agent,” said Spennato.

“Services like these will ensure that iron-clad lease agreements are in place and that payment received, as agreed upon. It would further have ensured that due procedures were followed timeously to prevent such debt.”

She added that in terms of the level three disconnection, electrical services will not be reconnected until the accumulated debts have been repaid thus making it difficult to make the property available for rental.

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