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Utility Bills Malaysia: How To Monitor If Your Tenant Is Paying Them

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The issue with tenants not paying their bills is not something new to happen in the home rental world. Frankly, this problem can be a real nuisance to any landlord.

There have been cases where bills have been left unpaid until the supply is cut off, and what’s worse is that some of the tenants would suddenly vanish. Now, who will be responsible for this debt??

In most circumstances, there’s nothing much that a landlord can do but to pay the total amount outstanding. However, don’t let that bring you down, and take it as a (pricey) learning curve instead.

Stop dwelling on the past and start taking the right action to protect yourself. For example, did you know that you can actually do a name change for all the utility bills of your rental property?

What does this mean to you as a landlord? You'll not be the one chased by the authorities, should there be any problem of arrears (which is basically lots of unpaid debt!). Instead, it will be the tenant or his/her next of kin.

Aren’t you relieved there's this convenient process, especially as there's quite a number of bills to think of, and it may seem complicated?

Don't worry, all you need is a smartphone and an internet connection, that’s it! We'll show you how to check the bills according to the utility category, be it for your own house or your rental property.

How To Check Your Electricity Bills

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The electricity resource in Malaysia is monopolised by none other than Tenaga Nasional Berhad (TNB). Ever heard of myTNB? It's a free mobile app for all!

If you have not downloaded myTNB, then you're definitely missing out. This is where we can check our electricity bills every month, our usage trends, and pay the bills online.

Not just for one house, but for up to 3 houses! So, without further ado, now's the time for you to easily monitor all of the bills in your rental properties:

  1. Download the myTNB app – Google Playstore for Android users, or App Store for iPhone users.

  2. Press the Register button.

  3. Fill in the required information: Name, IC number, Active mobile phone number.

  4. Enter the verification code you received on the registered phone number.

  5. If your IC number has been registered, the system will automatically display your account information.

  6. Press View Bill to check your electricity bill every month.

While you're doing all the above, you might as well change the name of the registered account owner to your tenant's name!

By doing so, all of the fixed bill arrears will go directly to the tenants wherever they go (it doesn’t matter how far they run or where they move to!). This is how you do it:

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  • Login to the myTNB app.

  • Press Add on Electricity Account.

  • Press Yes if you are the owner of the account, or No if you are not the owner of the additional account.

  • If you choose No, make sure you have the permission to view all of the information on the additional account.

  • Enter the code number and scan the barcode of your bill.

  • For account owners, you can enter the IC Number.

  • For non-account owners, enter the account owner's IC Number, if authorised to do so.

  • Press Add Account.

  • Press Confirm.

It's pretty easy when everything is at your fingertips, right? Don't worry if you face any problem while using the myTNB app, you can always refer to their official portal or call the TNB careline at 1300-88-5454.

This is the safest way that TNB recommends for you to protect yourself, in case you ever get a risky and irresponsible tenant. But is there any other way apart from adding an account? Well, of course!

Just cut off the electricity supply of the rental property, instead of allowing the rising debt to eat you alive. But you have to make sure that everything is printed in the Tenancy Agreement.

That’s it for your electricity bill. Now, what about water bills and Indah Water?

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How To Check Your Water Bills

Unlike TNB, water bills have to be paid by state rules, according to where you live. That's why you can see there are various applications for water bills such as Air Selangor, MySAJ, and others.

Below is an example for Air Selangor, as the method is more or less the same for the rest. Even if there's any difference, it won't vary too much, depending on the respective state:

  1. Download the Air Selangor application on the Google Playstore for Android users or the App Store for iPhone users (Skip this step if you already have this application).

  2. Press the I Agree button that appears on your smartphone screen.

  3. Fill in the requested information such as Name, Address, Email, Active phone number for verification purposes.

  4. Fill in the Identity Card/Police/Army/Passport number.

  5. Enter a password with a mixture of capital letters, numbers and symbols (Example: Selangor125@).

  6. Press the Sign Up button.

  7. Enter the verification code you will receive on the phone number you registered earlier.

  8. Log in.

  9. Select the registered name and home address (You can add more than 1 address).

  10. A summary of the monthly bill (Bill Issued) will be displayed in the form of a timeline for your monitoring.

  11. Click on any bill of your choice, and the bill's information will be displayed in full detail.

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Besides that, you can also do the checking through Air Selangor's official portal. The method is just the same as above. See how easy it is to monitor outstanding water bills?

Not only that, you can also see the water consumption trend on a monthly basis. If the bill suddenly goes up, you’ll know there must be something wrong at that rental property, and it's time for you to make an appointment to pay your tenants a visit.

How to Check Indah Water Bills

Who do you think is responsible for dealing with the sewerage work of wastewater that comes from all your daily activities? It's Indah Water!

That's why it's so important for us to pay the Indah Water bill, because they are the one servicing and providing us with a source of clean water.

However, there are many tenants out there who couldn’t care less about this, or might not even know that such a bill exists.

As a landlord, you really should not let your tenant’s ignorant behaviour pass, and hold them responsible for their own waste. Here are the steps you can take to ensure that:

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  1. Download the IWK e-bill app on Google Playstore, App Store, or you can register through the official portal.

  2. Press Member & eBill registration.

  3. Fill in the Sewerage account number.

  4. Enter your active Email address.

  5. Fill in your Full name.

  6. Enter the IC number.

  7. Enter an active Mobile phone number.

  8. Press Register.

Just like the other applications, you can add an account by simply going to Manage Account and enter the other Sewerage Account No. Done!

What Happens If My Tenant Runs Off Without Paying The Utility Bills?

In 2020, there was a shocking news report where a homeowner was left devastated when his tenants ran away from the rental property, and left a massive outstanding bill amount of RM5,000!

Worst of all, the homeowner did not include the terms and conditions related to the tenant's responsibility for utility bill management in the Tenancy Agreement. It was a real smack-in-the-face situation!

Your life as a landlord can be really difficult, especially when faced with nightmarish tenants. These are some of the consequences that you might have to bear, so best to be ready for them:

1) Utility supplies are cut off immediately

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If it is TNB, usually their officers will come to your house to make an inspection on the meter. They'll then cut off the supply when the red bill is sent out, but there is still no payment received.

The same thing goes for the other utilities, which will be cut off if no payment is made within the stipulated period of time.

2) Risk being fined or sued

You, as a landlord, can also face the risk of being fined if you are not aware that your home utility bills have not been paid.

In fact, TNB imposes a fine according to the number of days outstanding, along with an additional 1% interest rate. Here's the formula:

[Total arrears] x 1% x Number of days in arrears / 30 days

3) It'll hard to sell off the property

It will be difficult to sell a property that is tied to utility bills that contain a huge outstanding debt; who would want to take on someone else's burden?

There is a possibility that buyers might cancel if they found out about the arrears that have not been settled, during the process of transferring the ownership.

Furthermore, if the new buyer does not change the name of the utility bills and goes on living without paying a single cent, then the arrears will just build up under your responsibility as the original owner!

Protect Your Rights As A Landlord!

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In the world of real estate, you need to choose your actions wisely to protect yourself and your loved ones against unexpected events. God forbid, you never know what could happen at anytime.

Putting 100% trust that you'll be protected via the Tenancy Agreement alone, is not enough especially when it involves a rental property that is tied directly to the homeowner.

You will always have to keep a close watch to ensure there are no issues with your property. However, it's still important to know your boundaries and not go disturbing the tenants every single week!

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