Back Utility Bills Tenants Were Unaware Of

I'm renting a room in a house in Connecticut. There are 3 other renters besides myself and all rooms are currently rented. The landlord primarily lives out of state. Last fall each renter signed an agreement that the landlord would pay up to a certain amount for each water, gas, and electric bill ($200 for electric for instance) and the renters would have to split any cost over those set levels. We received 1 bill after that agreement and paid the overage. That's the last we heard, never got a single bill despite having requested them, were never told of overages, and were never asked to pay.

Last month, while visiting, she mentioned to me that the bills had gone slightly over the set levels for some previous bills, but she hadn't had time to send us copies and decided to eat the cost. Now, a month later, she provided the current electric bill, asking each renter to pay their share of the overage. The bill contained charges from a previous bill and a late fee so we asked to pay only for the current bill cycle charges. It's a discrepancy of about $25 per person, so not a big deal. However, considering that a good chunk of the high electric cost is due to a broken central air unit that should be functioning (if you look at our leases) that she's failed to have fixed despite 3 years of requests, I think it's pretty great that we're willing to pay for the overage at all.

NOW, upon us asking for her to knock off the previous bill's charge and late fee, she's asking us to each pay her $500 for back utility overages she'd originally chosen to eat and not mentioned when she'd been billed! Should we be expected to pay her the $500?

You state, "Last fall each renter signed an agreement that the landlord would pay up to a certain amount for each water, gas, and electric bill ($200 for electric for instance) and the renters would have to split any cost over those set levels." This is your agreement. It is a contract. It is your responsibility to pay for those bills. Ask for copies of the exact bills and overages. Then pay your share as you agreed to. No matter when you are notified, you now know that you were over the levels that the LL would pay. As long as the actual bills are shown to you and you can see that they are correct, you owe this money.

As for the A/C, what is wrong that it is malfunctioning? Is it not cooling the air? Not blowing with the fan? What is wrong with it? Have you continued to change the air filters year round as you must to get it to finction? If so, then write a repair request, send it certified, rrr, keep a copy. Ask that the LL contact you within the next few weeks to tell you when the repairman will arrive. If no service is made within 30 days, read Conn. General Statute 47a-13 on how to repair and deduct. Do not do this until you have sent a WRITTEN request as above.

Is that true even if she told us last month that she'd opted to pay those overages herself rather that worry us about it? I know our agreement says we're responsible, but she didn't send any of the bills as requested until just now, making it impossible for us to manage our utility usage to keep it under the levels she would cover.

As for the air conditioner, it's a central air unit. The fan will keep blowing, but it won't cool down the house. We've had people come out several times to refill it with coolant and repair leaks, but we've been told by all of them that the unit itself needs to be replaced. The landlord has repeatedly told us she can't afford to replace it, so if we do so and take it out of our rent we're afraid she'll retaliate somehow.

Thank you for your advice!

Did she put it in writing that she would cover the overages? If not, verbal agreements can't be proven in court. They just turn into he said-she said disagreements. You certainly knew that utility bills were coming each month. Winter utility bills should be over $200 for nearly every month, especialy with the price of energy and gas now. Did you ask about these? You owe them. Contact her to make a payment plan to get caught up.

Do you have it in writing from a certified A/C repairman that the unit cannot be fixed and must be replaced? Why couldn't just the condenser (the part that cools) be replaced instead of the entire unit? Obviously the fan is working fine. It should be possible to replace just the broken parts. Send WRITTEN notice to the LL to repair the A/C system. Send it certified, rrr, and keep a copy for yourself. Also keep the receipt that comes back. If she fails to repair within 30 days (could be less depending on your state), get an estimate to REPAIR (not replace) the system. See if the repair falls within your state's guideline for repair and deduct. If not, you can ask a court to lower your rent as compensation for renting a unit without A/C now.