Posted by Pat S. on 11/5/2008, 8:16 pm, in reply to "Re: smart meters and disasters"
The tenants' association I belong to was discussing this issue in 2005. ACTO, and their sub-organization, LIEN, has been on to it for some time.
One of the biggest problems we tenants have with conserving energy is often the ancient and energy-INefficient appliances that we are forced to use - esp. fridges and stoves.
As for laundry rooms - if they are closed at night, it is often for reasons of disturbing tenants who have to listen to washers and dryers thumping while trying to sleep. If tenants want access to laundry rooms at all hours, then a polite request could be made to the landlord (and perhaps suggestions that they could save money).
I have twice in my tenant history NOT taken a place that was electrically heated because I knew that I couldn't afford the hydro bill. This is simply an issue of finding out just what you are paying for when you sign the lease in the first place.
--Previous Message--
: Actually I encountered a number of buildings
: that had their laundry rooms open at all
: hours, presumable to accommodate tenants who
: work odd shifts. As I understand everything
: I've read, the smart meters will involve
: much more accurate billing which has the
: potential to SAVE money too.
:
: I think the BIGGEST problem for tenants with
: regards to hydro costs is those of us who
: got stuck with electric baseboard heating
: and so feel through a HUGE hole in the
: tenant protection legislation (both the
: R.T.A. and its predecessor). The law does
: not require the landlord to pay for heat
: when the tenant can control the temperature
: and that's simply wrong.
:
: --Previous Message--
: Frankly Dan, I,m surprised that tenants
: groups
: were not on the ball sooner regarding the
: "smart meters"
:
: I have been sying for ages that they are not
: fair for tenants, or even Landlords.
:
: Most tenants have little choice when they
: use their hydro. They have to cook their
: meals at a certain time, cool their apts
: when they come home from work, ect. Most
: tenants dont have dishwashers that they can
: run in off hours, or apt laundry facilities
: they can use off hours to save on the hydro
: rate.
:
: Similiarily Landlords have to heat buildings
: when its cold and light them when its dark.
: They cant just use hydro in the off hours.
: This higher cost will eventually be passed
: onto tenants.
:
: Tenants and Landlords will now be paying a
: MUCH higher hydro rate as neither party can
: use the off hour lower hydro rate.
:
: How come no one has said anything about this
: for tenants?
:
: --Previous Message--
: this is a letter we sent to the Minister
: yesterday
:
:
: October 22, 2008
:
:
: The Honourable Jim Watson
: Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing
: 777 Bay Street, 17th Floor
: Toronto, Ontario
: M5B 2E5
:
:
:
: Dear Minister,
:
: We are writing to you about two urgent and
: immediate issues affecting tenants.
:
:
: Smart Sub Metering
:
: This issue has caused great stress to
: tenants because landlords are using
: regrettable tactics to push tenants into bad
: deals to take over hydro payments. Tenants
: who have taken this matter to the Landlord
: Tenant Board have had to deal with hundreds
: of pages of legal documents from a high
: priced lawyer to avoid a simple declaration
: that landlords can not force tenants into a
: deal they do not want or risk losing
: electricity.
:
: This is also a “back door” method to get an
: extra rent increase by offering tenants only
: a very low rent reduction that does not meet
: the real costs of hydro for tenants.
:
: We believe that it is imperative that you
: protect these tenants with swift and
: decisive action.
:
: 1. Charges need to be laid against those
: landlords who are threatening tenants with
: the loss of their electricity. We are aware
: that some landlords are doing this in
: several apartment buildings in the Greater
: Toronto Area.
: 2. Take steps to proclaim section 137 and
: 138 of the Residential Tenancies Act. We
: are aware that there is work to do on the
: regulations and some issues of concern to
: some tenant advocates. However, these
: sections do have elements of fairness and it
: would be far better to have this in place
: than to have tenants go through the stress
: that landlords (and smart meter sales
: people) are causing. To protect the
: thousands of tenants we have been meeting
: with in the last few months, the
: proclamation would need to have
: retrospective effect to July 1, 2008. This
: will still leave plenty of time to work on
: the regulations.
:
:
: Mr. Minister, we fully support the goal of
: energy conservation. We are encouraging
: tenants to conserve, and we will step up
: those efforts. We know that every person in
: Ontario can do better, although we reject
: the suggestion from landlords that tenants
: are terribly wasteful.
:
: Tenants can not wait until the landlords
: take this matter to Divisional Court to know
: that the Government will protect them from
: this blatantly unfair scheme foisted on them
: by some landlords. We have been meeting
: with tenants in their buildings across the
: City for several months. The stress and
: strain on them is unacceptable.
:
:
: Protecting Tenants Suffering From A Disaster
:
:
: We very much appreciate the answer that you
: gave the member from Beaches East York with
: respect to the recent disaster at 2 Secord
: in East Toronto.
:
: You indicated that you would look at
: possible amendments to protect tenants
: better.
:
: All of us can imagine the stress and trauma
: of being forced out of our apartments by an
: explosion in the middle of the night, and
: then weeks later having to move back in to
: units that smelled and were dirty and having
: to worry whether they were really safe. The
: tenant population in this building included
: families with children, the elderly, and
: many newcomers.
:
: We also realize that it may not have been
: the fault of the landlord and that needs to
: be factored in.
:
: We would like to meet with your policy
: advisors and eventually yourself to see if
: we can help develop ideas to improve the
: legislation. Your answer to Mr. Prue was a
: great start.
:
: We thank you for your consideration to these
: matters. We will follow up in the days
: ahead.
:
:
: Yours sincerely,
:
:
:
:
: Gene Lara, Dan McIntyre
: Chairperson Program Co-Ordinator
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
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