Landlords petition Prayut to kill new tenant protections

[webfact]

Landlords petition Prayut to kill new tenant protections

By The Nation

 

Business operators on Monday urged Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha to cancel a Consumer Protection Board measure implemented on May 1 to protect customers from being overcharged on utility fees by hostels, apartments or rented rooms in residential buildings.
 

Another measure prohibits landlords from removing the belongings of a tenant alleged to have breached a rental contract and to instead take the matter to court.

 

The new regulations cause them a financial burden, the 60-strong business group pleaded, as they filed a petition to the premier at the Public Service Centre in Government House.

 

It was impractical to follow the new requirement to charge no more then the electricity and tap-water fees charged by the authorities to the business, they said, because an individual apartment’s monthly bill cycle date might not match the dates on the bill from power and water authorities.

 

If they abided by the new rule, landlords would carry this burden, they said. And so they could not adhere to the new regulation and would risk punishment, they said.

 

A new rule allowing tenants to cancel a rental contract before an agreed period without consequence, would affect the landlords' business and marketing planning, and create additional room-repairing costs whenever a tenant left prematurely, they said.

 

Another new rule prohibiting landlords from cancelling a rental contract without giving the tenant a 30-day advance notice also “overly protects” tenants who had disturbed others or broken the law from being evicted, said the petitioners.

 

The group's leader Ratchata Tantiwittayakul said the board had also failed to seek prior input or ask for cooperation from the businesses most affected before implementation. She said a new announcement on the matter should be made and reflect the input of owners of room-rental businesses.

 

Source: http://www.nationmultimedia.com/detail/national/30346427

 

-- © Copyright The Nation 2018-05-28

[sweatalot]

Not surprised. They want to continue overcharging.

[overherebc]

1 minute ago, sweatalot said:

Not surprised. They want to continue overcharging.

I know, how can they continue to rip people off when the law doesn't seem to be on their side.

Maybe have to sell a Benz or better/worse still use it as a taxi.

[darksidedog]

11 minutes ago, webfact said:

It was impractical to follow the new requirement to charge no more then the electricity and tap-water fees charged by the authorities to the business, they said, because an individual apartment’s monthly bill cycle date might not match the dates on the bill from power and water authorities.

Clearly rubbish. If they are so concerned about the billing cycle, they always have the option to adjust their own, to match it. This is a bunch of filthy money grabbers, who have been extorting their customers for years and think it OK to ask for official help to allow them to continue doing so. I hope they get slapped back down again, and forced to follow the law.

[smedly]

18 minutes ago, darksidedog said:

It was impractical to follow the new requirement to charge no more then the electricity and tap-water fees charged by the authorities to the business, they said, because an individual apartment’s monthly bill cycle date might not match the dates on the bill from power and water authorities.

 

19 minutes ago, darksidedog said:

Clearly rubbish. If they are so concerned about the billing cycle, they always have the option to adjust their own, to match it. This is a bunch of filthy money grabbers, who have been extorting their customers for years and think it OK to ask for official help to allow them to continue doing so. I hope they get slapped back down again, and forced to follow the law.

have to agree, the billing cycle is different   

 

what a complete pile of nonsense - if it really bothers them that much then alter the dates so they are aligned 

[Outbackoz]

1 hour ago, webfact said:

It was impractical to follow the new requirement to charge no more then the electricity and tap-water fees charged by the authorities to the business, they said, because an individual apartment’s monthly bill cycle date might not match the dates on the bill from power and water authorities.

 

If they abided by the new rule, landlords would carry this burden, they said. And so they could not adhere to the new regulation and would risk punishment, they said.

 

Perhaps someone can explain what the billing cycle has to do with the price of a unit of electricity/ water. If a consumer has used X units of water and X units of electricity they pay accordingly, no more and no less. 

[pookiki]

My landlord only lowered the charges for electricity and water by one baht under the new regulations.   I'm fairly certain that these new rates do not comply with the law. However, OCPB never issued any clear guidelines on the manner in which the new regulations were to be implemented.  This leave landlords with a lot of 'wiggle' room and most tenants (including me) will not want to get into an extended pissing match with their landlords.

[nasa123]

1 hour ago, sweatalot said:

Not surprised. They want to continue overcharging.

 

1 hour ago, sweatalot said:

Not surprised. They want to continue overcharging.

Still they can overcharging whit 20 % according to the law.

[Bassosa]

It's a silly law.

 

Landlords should be able to charge whatever costs at whatever rates as long as the tenant is aware of them and has agreed to them.

 

It's a free market. Overcharging landlords will quickly find their properties empty, wouldn't they?

 

A free market and free choice is a beautiful thing.

 

Don't like it? Move out. Don't act like you're a victim.

 

 

Edited May 28, 2018 by Bassosa

[overherebc]

49 minutes ago, smedly said:

 

have to agree, the billing cycle is different   

 

what a complete pile of nonsense - if it really bothers them that much then alter the dates so they are aligned 

That involves thinking.

[Oziex1]

The landlady I was renting a room in Phuket from had a separate electric meter installed specifically for my room.  When it came time to settle the bill for rent and electric the cost of units used by me during my stay clearly didn't suit her so right before my eyes she jacked it up to please herself. Thainess.

[RichardColeman]

1 hour ago, webfact said:

Another new rule prohibiting landlords from cancelling a rental contract without giving the tenant a 30-day advance notice also “overly protects” tenants who had disturbed others or broken the law from being evicted, said the petitioners.

Its probably there so that unscrupulous landlords cannot evict quickly on trumped up reasons !

[Jeremy50]

Years of stealing money from people, and now the party's over. You think it's OK to add 100% onto an electricity bill? It isn't, the tenants should be handed the bill from the electricity company directly to pay by themselves. Now people can actually afford to turn their air con on during the hottest weather.  Unbelievable this dishonesty was allowed to continue for so long.

[Jeremy50]

37 minutes ago, pookiki said:

My landlord only lowered the charges for electricity and water by one baht under the new regulations.   I'm fairly certain that these new rates do not comply with the law. However, OCPB never issued any clear guidelines on the manner in which the new regulations were to be implemented.  This leave landlords with a lot of 'wiggle' room and most tenants (including me) will not want to get into an extended pissing match with their landlords.

 The maximum that can now be charged is 6 baht per unit, i.e., normal price plus 20%. More than that, and the landlord can be fined 100 000 baht or go to prison for 1 year.

[ChrisY1]

No-one here accepts change......rules for landlords is a normal procedure and here in Thailand, tenants need all the help they can get!

Trying to get Thailand into the 21st century is an almost impossible task....as for Thailand 4.0....forget it!

[attrayant]

1 hour ago, Bassosa said:

It's a free market. Overcharging landlords will quickly find their properties empty, wouldn't they?

 

Nope.  Then there would be price fixing.

[KhunFred]

Because we are going to ignore them anyway. Why would you think we have the best interests of tenants in mind??? Silly rabbit....tricks are for kids.

[KhunFred]

15 minutes ago, attrayant said:

 

Nope.  Then there would be price fixing.

The myth of the "free market" is the oldest scam in capitalist history.

[petermik]

My landlord have complied with the new regs....`leccy and water both down.....but also slapped a 200 baht "service charge" on all long stayers

[tropo]

1 hour ago, Outbackoz said:

Perhaps someone can explain what the billing cycle has to do with the price of a unit of electricity/ water. If a consumer has used X units of water and X units of electricity they pay accordingly, no more and no less. 

It's very easy to read the meter when the tenant leaves, then estimate VERY closely what his bill should be. There is a slight variation of per kWh cost depending on the size of the bill. For example, mine varies from 4.14 to 4.34 baht/kWh, including VAT. If you look back on the tenant's previous bills, you'll be able to estimate it quite accurately, probably to less than a 10 baht error margin. Anyone with half a brain could calculate this in a minute or two. Landlords want to use this as an excuse to pad the bill by many baht.

Edited May 28, 2018 by tropo

[clokwise]

Our apartment has lowered the electricity rates, however there is a new "maintenance fee" ostensibly for the cleaning and security services. It all balances out around the same amount I guess.

[zaphod reborn]

1 hour ago, Bassosa said:

It's a silly law.

 

Landlords should be able to charge whatever costs at whatever rates as long as the tenant is aware of them and has agreed to them.

 

It's a free market. Overcharging landlords will quickly find their properties empty, wouldn't they?

 

A free market and free choice is a beautiful thing.

 

Don't like it? Move out. Don't act like you're a victim.

 

 

I can understand your libertarian viewpoint.  What do you think about self-help evictions?  Do you think they should be illegal?  Do you think landlords should be allowed to steal your property from your unit if you are behind on your rent?  What about refusing to refund security deposits unless the tenant obtains a court judgment?  No, those aren't libertarian-approved actions and change in the law was necessary to make the market more level between landlord and tenant, and ban obviously illegal eviction tactics.

[pookiki]

2 hours ago, Jeremy50 said:

 The maximum that can now be charged is 6 baht per unit, i.e., normal price plus 20%. More than that, and the landlord can be fined 100 000 baht or go to prison for 1 year.

I wish it was as easy at that. Residential electricity can be billed under three different methods - two are graduated scales based on usage and one is based on 'time' of usage. Water is billed on a graduated scale based on usage. In some apartment buildings, there are ONLY individual meters for each room. However, most apartment buildings have a 'master' meter for billing purposes for water and electricity and then tenants are billed by individual usage.  There is nothing in the law that speaks to the maximum charge. The law says that tenants are to pay the same rates as applies to residences.  There is no such thing as  'normal' price.   In the case of a master meter situation, the only thing the landlord can do is to average the normal cost associated with usage. This method will punish those who conserve and reward those who don't.

[seajae]

its like everything else the govt has cracked down on, the ones losing money are not happy  even though they have been ripping off people. This is just the way many thais work, they dont like the idea that they can no longer make extra profit from customers

[300sd]

Cry me a river landlords! 

 

No one cares to be cheated.... not even your lowly tenants! These kinds of regulations are very common in most parts of the normal world. Get over it.

 

 

[Bluespunk]

4 hours ago, webfact said:

A new rule allowing tenants to cancel a rental contract before an agreed period without consequence, would affect the landlords' business and marketing planning, and create additional room-repairing costs whenever a tenant left prematurely, they said.

My heart bleeds...

[scorecard]

4 hours ago, darksidedog said:

Clearly rubbish. If they are so concerned about the billing cycle, they always have the option to adjust their own, to match it. This is a bunch of filthy money grabbers, who have been extorting their customers for years and think it OK to ask for official help to allow them to continue doing so. I hope they get slapped back down again, and forced to follow the law.

 

They remind me of the senior judge who had a solution to the judges enclave in CM, 'just let us stay here for 10 years.

 

Just elitist / immoral attitudes with no respect for anybody.

 

 

 

[scorecard]

36 minutes ago, pookiki said:

I wish it was as easy at that. Residential electricity can be billed under three different methods - two are graduated scales based on usage and one is based on 'time' of usage. Water is billed on a graduated scale based on usage. In some apartment buildings, there are ONLY individual meters for each room. However, most apartment buildings have a 'master' meter for billing purposes for water and electricity and then tenants are billed by individual usage.  There is nothing in the law that speaks to the maximum charge. The law says that tenants are to pay the same rates as applies to residences.  There is no such thing as  'normal' price.   In the case of a master meter situation, the only thing the landlord can do is to average the normal cost associated with usage. This method will punish those who conserve and reward those who don't.

 

OIC, so let's just fall back to a method which generates nice gains for the landlord and ignores the natural rights of tenants.

 

 

[moontang]

I just talked to my landlord....no more 8 THB per unit.  Now 5..but they are adding a 290 per month service fee...but still better for me.  I was barely able to keep my usage below 200 units in my studio, during these hot months.  Always older aircon units in these places, too.  Water is now 31, and was 25...but there was a 200 minimum.  She swore they were losing money, as it cost them 31....but how many use 7 or more units in studios?  very few.  In the provinces...she assured me water is less in BKK metro.  I just bought a place, anyway....should have done this when I signed the lease in February.  They knew it was coming.  Low rent and high bills is more likely to attract lowlifes, IMO.  With the exception of a few, who are gone most of the time.

[KhunFred]

6 minutes ago, moontang said:

I just talked to my landlord....no more 8 THB per unit.  Now 5..but they are adding a 290 per month service fee...but still better for me.  I was barely able to keep my usage below 200 units in my studio, during these hot months.  Always older aircon units in these places, too.  Water is now 31, and was 25...but there was a 200 minimum.  She swore they were losing money, as it cost them 31....but how many use 7 or more units in studios?  very few.  In the provinces...she assured me water is less in BKK metro.  I just bought a place, anyway....should have done this when I signed the lease in February.  They knew it was coming.  Low rent and high bills is more likely to attract lowlifes, IMO.  With the exception of a few, who are gone most of the time.

Obviously, when you allow "service charges" and the like to pad bills, there is no real savings. The only answer is prices being dictated by a central authority. Landlords NEVER have enough profit to satisfy them.