Legal Question in Credit and Debt Law in Washington
Electric bill
My daughter didn't take her name off of the electric bill when she moved from a home in Seattle. She moved in Dec.,recently she received a bill, her first since her move, it was $925.00. She contacted the electric company, they will not take her name off of the account. Someone at the home has closed the account that has her name on it and has created a new account. The electric company has advised her to contact the owner of the home. Which she is in the process of doing. Can you advise on how this can be resolved so that my daughter is not responsible for a bill she did not help to create?
1 Answer from Attorneys
Re: Electric bill
Let's start from when your daughter moved out. She should have notified the utility companies that she was leaving and would no longer be paying the bill. She can ask the utility for a statement through the date she vacated.
She should have heard from the landlord if there was any outstanding money due to the landlord, for example if the utility was billing the landlord for outstanding utilities.
I'd want to look at the contract she signed with the utility for services, and how they determined that she has an obligation for an additional three months of services.
She needs to write to the landlord and send a copy of the same letter to the utility, and when she gets a response, she needs to be sure the utility gets a copy of the landlord's response.
Worst case she can sue the landlord in small claims for the bills she did not incur, but bottom line she has to be able to show she told the utility she was leaving.
Hope this helps. Elizabeth Powell
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