Electricity Bills: Single Phase or Three phase

Hi,

it is really impossible to give a clear answer from the scanty information that you give in your post.

Please give some clear figures on usage and billed amount .

You can wait long , longer and even longer for information from ARMS ( the billing authority) as you are not the account holder.

Cheers
Ricky

We used to be billed as a 3 phase supply to the house although as you say it then split to single phase for us and the house next door.
We were listed as residential (2 occupants) and the only difference the 3 phase made was to the service charge for electricity which was around 3 times the cost. The price per unit remaind the same.

You could put fictional usage figures into the ARMS bill calculator for both single and 3 phase and see the difference in service charge for your 2 year period.

Ray

Whilst just about every home is single phase, derived from 3 phase distribution, some single phase distribution networks still exist.
I think this is what is being referred to here, the distribution system, not what is in the home.

is the apartment billed separately - am guessing not - as it should be - her property, maybe,  is supplied as three phase and she has avoided splitting the supplies to save money  -  id be highly suspicious!!!!

am i understanding you correctly that she is only now billing you for the whole two year period? having re-read it maybe not but just for clarity!

Hi peeps, could someone tell me what T3 means when clicking through the options on the electric mtr? Trying to find out what tariff I'm on.... Been on Arms limited site.. To check out calculator... But there is Non residential and residential .... I should of asked a lot more about electric when I moved in... Paid €60 on move in date... Landlady wants €60 per month till bill comes through... When bill comes through she said she will knock off bill if I have over paid.... Or I'll pay more if I have underpaid..
What do you think about this peeps?

Thanks

non residential is expensive as is domestic - ask to see the real two page bill from arms - in the top right of the bill you will see scheme - Residential = 0 is the more expensive tariff.. ie domestic  - Residential greater than 0 is fine.

be very aware that waiting to see a bill while incurring a potentially domestic rated bill could prove to be very expensive  = find out now what the real tariff is... dont accept oh it cheap or you will be fine statements from the landlord....

NB many tenants have been caught out by this arrangement and left holding the baby with a very very large bill.... if the landlord doesnt get a bill for 6 months or a year as is often the case its likely that he has declared the property as little used and is a smmer residence and as such  IT WILL BE ON DOMESTIC - so question it and find out.

One further note - when you see the two page bill check out the graphs of previous months usage at the bottom of page 2  as excessive heavy use in occupancy by previous tenants can penalise you - as its possible that the property may have been on short lets where tourists dont care what they use as it may have been included in their short term rental.......and this heavy usage can impact on you as the tariff banding kicks in thus you could end up on a very high rate per unit.

Ooops!  Landlady could well be above board and acting in your best interests but who chose not to take the advice....................

27    Check out how the bills for utilities will be presented to you.

28    Make sure you are named on the bills as named registered consumers on the account holder/owners bills, or get your bills in your own name - if you don’t you may have problems later and you could undoubtedly end up paying more than you should. Ask your landlord to complete ARMS Form H to ensure that you, your family or anyone else legally residing with you, are registered as occupants. Form H here:
https://www.smartutilities.com.mt/wps/w … OD=AJPERES

This is for the Landlord to do and enables the renter to get the lowest tariff:

29    Do an energy consumption check when you arrive. Check the start readings and after a normal week of consumption check it again and then do a calculation online here: https://mita.gov.mt/billsavings/

30    Ensure you get a copy of the two pages bill from ARMs and not just a handwritten or spreadsheet based extract compiled by the landlord.

31    Ensure you have a record of the rent paid and utility payments – a rent book is a good idea. Most landlords prefer to be paid cash...NB this may be so the landlord can avoid declaring income for tax.

32    Keep your bills and records of payments, this may help you later if you eventually have a problem

Toon wrote:

non residential is expensive as is domestic - ask to see the real two page bill from arms - in the top right of the bill you will see scheme - Residential = 0 is the more expensive tariff.. ie domestic  - Residential greater than 0 is fine.

be very aware that waiting to see a bill while incurring a potentially domestic rated bill could prove to be very expensive  = find out now what the real tariff is... dont accept oh it cheap or you will be fine statements from the landlord....

NB many tenants have been caught out by this arrangement and left holding the baby with a very very large bill.... if the landlord doesnt get a bill for 6 months or a year as is often the case its likely that he has declared the property as little used and is a smmer residence and as such  IT WILL BE ON DOMESTIC - so question it and find out.

One further note - when you see the two page bill check out the graphs of previous months usage at the bottom of page 2  as excessive heavy use in occupancy by previous tenants can penalise you - as its possible that the property may have been on short lets where tourists dont care what they use as it may have been included in their short term rental.......and this heavy usage can impact on you as the tariff banding kicks in thus you could end up on a very high rate per unit.

Thanks toon, I took readings for both water and electric, the landlady told me I am on residential 0 tariff single phase...... What do you make of that?..... All landlords in malta never want to do this form H which unfortunately left me no more time to argue about it.... But now I'm established here I'll be doing things better.

redmik wrote:

Ooops!  Landlady could well be above board and acting in your best interests but who chose not to take the advice....................

27    Check out how the bills for utilities will be presented to you.

28    Make sure you are named on the bills as named registered consumers on the account holder/owners bills, or get your bills in your own name - if you don’t you may have problems later and you could undoubtedly end up paying more than you should. Ask your landlord to complete ARMS Form H to ensure that you, your family or anyone else legally residing with you, are registered as occupants. Form H here:
https://www.smartutilities.com.mt/wps/w … OD=AJPERES

This is for the Landlord to do and enables the renter to get the lowest tariff:

29    Do an energy consumption check when you arrive. Check the start readings and after a normal week of consumption check it again and then do a calculation online here: https://mita.gov.mt/billsavings/

30    Ensure you get a copy of the two pages bill from ARMs and not just a handwritten or spreadsheet based extract compiled by the landlord.

31    Ensure you have a record of the rent paid and utility payments – a rent book is a good idea. Most landlords prefer to be paid cash...NB this may be so the landlord can avoid declaring income for tax.

32    Keep your bills and records of payments, this may help you later if you eventually have a problem

Lol thanks red, I did ask about form H on the property's that I viewed but they all said no that's not how it's done lol so in the end I just went for it... Oops! I was running out of time to be honest... If the land lady try's ripping me off on electric ill just move out and not pay rent... Simples

Thats domestic rate and you will pay heavily for it  - 30-65%  more

"its not how its done" - - - - means " we do it this way so i can evade tax and you will pay more but you can afford it"

shes not trying to rip you off she IS ripping you off. .  in order for her to evade the tax man.....

Be careful in not paying the rent thats due - as she may decide to use the other weapon in her arsenal  - the garnishee order - to freeze your bank account and salary... and they dont need much proof for that if any at all....if she did that you could be left with just minimum wages to live on

Toon wrote:

Be careful in not paying the rent thats due - as she may decide to use the other weapon in her arsenal  - the garnishee order - to freeze your bank account and salary... and they dont need much proof for that if any at all....if she did that you could be left with just minimum wages to live on

Yikes! Ok... So first of all she does not have my bank details.... And what shall I do?

Thanks again

Toon wrote:

Thats domestic rate and you will pay heavily for it  - 30-65%  more

"its not how its done" - - - - means " we do it this way so i can evade tax and you will pay more but you can afford it"

And surly I have some power over her? She's the one avoiding tax after all?

believe me if she knows people (as illegal as it may be)  that wont be too hard  -  if they can get to your salary they can get to the bank account tied to it

all am saying is that you must be careful.....

Toon wrote:

believe me if she knows people (as illegal as it may be)  that wont be too hard  -  if they can get to your salary they can get to the bank account tied to it

all am saying is that you must be careful.....

Ok, well she does not even no where I work .. I work the other end of the island... I still don't have e residency card... No maltese bank account.. I get paid cash or cheque ... So think I'm ok there... However what can I say to change this? Maybe I say to her if you don't put the electric on correct rate ill report it to Arms limited? Council? Government ? What do you think I should do?

Thanks

If you report her you will invite a whole heap of trouble.
Why? Because you will probably be accused as a co-conspirator in her evasion.
Maltese law is illogical in many cases and very biased against non Malta citizens.
Try this; point out to her that if she is unwilling to sign Form H (which of course whilst smiling you tell her you understand why) then renegotiate lower rent to account for the higher rates charges for electricity.
This is what we did (before Form H came into being I will add).
In the meantime look for somewhere else if you are not happy.

redmik wrote:

If you report her you will invite a whole heap of trouble.
Why? Because you will probably be accused as a co-conspirator in her evasion.
Maltese law is illogical in many cases and very biased against non Malta citizens.
Try this; point out to her that if she is unwilling to sign Form H (which of course whilst smiling you tell her you understand why) then renegotiate lower rent to account for the higher rates charges for electricity.
This is what we did (before Form H came into being I will add).
In the meantime look for somewhere else if you are not happy.

I just called Arms limited and they said that it costs the landlord/ landlady €460 to register me here with form H.. No wonder landlords/ landladys avoid this... So far my bill is €44 for both... That's for 3 weeks... I can't complain to much about that... Think what ill do is mention all this on my next place... However I do think that this is another pain in the butt issue that the foreigner to tackle....

Not correct I would argue that is for Form F which transfers the meter and account.
Form H updates the number of people on the account.

Form H  https://www.smartutilities.com.mt/wps/w … OD=AJPERES

and

https://www.smartutilities.com.mt/wps/p … ur+account

Form F  https://www.smartutilities.com.mt/wps/w … OD=AJPERES

It's not just the foreigner that has to do this so it is not discriminatory.

not true the landlord doesnt have to do this  - at all  - landlord doesnt pay.....tenant only pays if the account goes into the tenants name... simple as that - you can by getting landlords permission via the signing of form H be included on his account as a registered consumer and that is free of charge to both landlord and tenant- = - - the landlords are usually scared of being outed by arms to the taxman or should i say thats what they think and believe... distrust in any government controlled approved and authorised entity

the deposit is meant to ensure that they hold enough to cover any outstanding bills if a person leaves the country... but its a phallacy..the likely hood is the fact they cannot issue accurate bills every two months as mandated to do.. so the eventual bills may exceed that  - subject to number of consumers and usages.

One can always apply for refund once youve proved to be a good payer...

redmik wrote:

It's not just the foreigner that has to do this so it is not discriminatory.

I know maltese have to do this to but at least it's easier for them to do deal with, and I'm sure maltese to maltese would work something out? All the Arms lady kept saying was for you to be registered it will cost €460 .... And there is no way around it? I mean .. What can you do about that lol!

Darrylmartin wrote:

Toon wrote:

Thats domestic rate and you will pay heavily for it  - 30-65%  more

"its not how its done" - - - - means " we do it this way so i can evade tax and you will pay more but you can afford it"

And surly I have some power over her? She's the one avoiding tax after all?

Toon lady at Arms limited said my landlady is not doing anything wrong? It seems she is avoiding paying €460 to register me..... Which to be fare I can't blame her.... I think Arms limited need to create a new way of doing things because it's one big jumble!

Now, to update information for registered customers Form H. As far as I am aware there is no charge for that.
To transfer account and be registered as the account holder Form F and yes there is a charge for that.
Be careful of the language that is used and how that is interpreted.
Both Toon and I are saying the same thing.

It is not unusual for representatives of any service supplier or business to get things wrong, particularly at first time of asking.
Often one has to explain what one wants in simplistic language, step by step.

Actually, what is happening here, whilst not strictly above board is NFM (Normal For Malta).
I'll just edit that...............it is not illegal.

What landlords may be doing at a later stage may be illegal but that is their business and of course, they could not be acting illegally.

It's one of the interesting things about living here. 

I have a renegotiated contract due to paying the higher rate.
I receive a copy of the bill every two months (both pages) and I pay to my landlady.
All in her name so it's her responsibility and both happy.

One can try to change things but that will be fraught with stress, difficulty and I would say, impossible to achieve.
'They are all in it together' 

Totally agree red... It's just the stress and arguement I will find myself in with her... She is a pain As it is lol! let alone putting that to her.... As I said before my bill is only €44 for electric and water... Which is for 3 weeks,So can't complain ... Although I have been carefull... Do I wish I talked more about electric tariffs with landlady...yes!...I just had limited time before I would of gone back to Over priced UK... And that wasn't going to happen! However I learn from all of this and not make this mistake again... Thanks guys for educating me.

Arms response is disgraceful "there is no way round it " yes there is  FACT.....

the problem is that there is so much distrust in Malta of government agencies -- they dont even trust themselves....lol

they way round this is to convince the landlord that there is a way round it (via form H) and that there is no way that ARMs can misuse the data it collects by outing them to the taxman - -DPA prevents that and if it were to happen and it could be proved well thats another massive can of worms.

One person I know did exactly that and his landlord signed quite happily... ARMs staff leave a lot to be desired but then thats managements fault or should i say lack of training and good management practice


NB .... "All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing"

As for your bill when i lived there (upto july last year)  with three persons on the bills (2 retired and  at home all day) in a three bed massive flat our bill never exceeded €43 pr month   - and id say that yours should be nearer €25

redmik wrote:

Try this; point out to her that if she is unwilling to sign Form H (which of course whilst smiling you tell her you understand why) then renegotiate lower rent to account for the higher rates charges for electricity.
This is what we did (before Form H came into being I will add).
In the meantime look for somewhere else if you are not happy.

Hi Mick, just interested in you saying, before Form H came into being, as far as I know Form H has been around for a long time, it was certainly around in 2012 when we had ours signed.

rainbow3 wrote:

redmik wrote:

Try this; point out to her that if she is unwilling to sign Form H (which of course whilst smiling you tell her you understand why) then renegotiate lower rent to account for the higher rates charges for electricity.
This is what we did (before Form H came into being I will add).
In the meantime look for somewhere else if you are not happy.

Hi Mick, just interested in you saying, before Form H came into being, as far as I know Form H has been around for a long time, it was certainly around in 2012 when we had ours signed.

it was certainly in place in Dec 2010

and am sure there was a form for the same thing - in November 2009  - whether ti was labelled as form H am  not sure.

It's more likely that you are paying at the domestic rate (Number of residents = zero).  There are three tariffs:  residential for people living in their primary residences, domestic tariff for occasionally used or empty properties and the non residential tariff for businesses.

You should be on the residential tariff because you are living in your primary residence.  There is a lot of confusion, very probably deliberate, with this. 

Your landlady could play hard ball and get the Maltese court to garnishee your bank account and or salary (freeze them in other words).  Some landlords are arrogant enough to do that even if it means that they are exposing their tax evasion.  Ours did, for instance, and I have had monthly court appearances for about 19 months.

Most of them, however, will blanch at the prospect of you informing the Tax Compliance Unit and will beat a hasty retreat. 

I would use the Arms online calculator to work out the cost of your entire stay at the residential rate.  In other words, choose the residential option and choose the correct number of residents.  You might find that SHE owes YOU money.  I would then very firmly explain that it was HER responsibility to complete Arms Form H and therefore you are going to pay the amount you should have paid because you were living in your primary residence. 

Good luck.

one must also remember the landlord has more than likely declared the property as empty,,thus domestic is applied and only 1 or maybe 2 bills per yr issued ... and its a requirement to notify the supplier of any material changes and that includes occupancy... and the penalty for not doing so is quite heavy......