Gas, water and electricity

Pay attention!
Energy prices have risen sharply in 2022. At the beginning of 2022, CBS (add link?) expected energy bills to rise by 82%. Some suppliers raised their prices again in July 2022. It is important for you to check how these things have been arranged for the accommodation that you are renting or planning to rent. In addition, it is useful to follow the latest news on this topic. Certain groups of tenants receive compensation from the government; whether you will notice this is something you need to find out.

Gas, water and electricity
What about the costs of gas, water and electricity? Has your property owner contracted suppliers on your behalf? Do you as a tenant have to arrange this yourself? Or is it a combination of both? There are no clear rules or guidelines regarding tenancy agreements concerning gas, water and electricity. It is possible and common that your landlord has a different agreement with your neighbour than with you.

  1. Find out which agreements apply to your room, studio or apartment. If you have rented your new house through Roomspot, the advertisement would have stated whether gas, water and electricity have been arranged for by your landlord or whether you have to take care of this yourself. If you do not remember what applies, you can look it up in your rental contract. If that does not help, then you should contact your landlord to ask whether you still need to organise your gas, water and electricity yourself. Sometimes, a landlord includes these costs (partly) in the service costs.
  2. Has your landlord arranged everything on your behalf? Great! If this is the case , you do not have to do anything yourself. You pay a monthly advance and the landlord is obliged to settle the actual usage with you annually. If you only use a little gas, water and electricity, you may get a refund. On the other hand, if you use a lot of gas, water and electricity then you may have to pay extra.
  3. Do you have to organise a contract for gas, water and electricity yourself? If this is the case, it is good to know that you cannot choose a supplier for water, because if you live in Enschede or Hengelo, Vitens is the only supplier. Notifying them online about your move (in Dutch only) can be done in less then five minutes. You can sign a contract with an energy supplier for gas and electricity, unless your rental accomodation is in an area that is connected to district heating (Dutch: stadsverwarming). If this is the case, you cannot choose a different supplier because your accomodation does not have an indepent hot water system. You will be dealing with Ennatuurlijk (website only in Dutch) for district heating your accomodation.
  4. Are you looking for a supplier for gas and electricity? There are many different providers, each with their own rates and contracts. It can be difficult to compare all providers; this is why there are websites that can help you compare, such as the Consumentenbond, Independer, and Pricewise. Choose a supplier that suits your situation and your preferences. 

Please note that, whichever you pay for gas, water, and electricity, you will always have to pay in advance and any differences will (normally) be settled after one year based on your actual usage. Since prices have increased extensively, it is wise to look whether the advance payments that you make are still appropriate to cover the high energy costs. You can arrange for an increase in your monthly payment with your energy supplier. Do you pay your landlord in advance? Then you need to check with your landlord whether you can adjust your monthly payment.