Tenant Racks Up RM21k Electricity Bill, Netizens Wonder Why TNB Didn’t Cut Off Power Supply

The pending amount that needs to be settled is RM21,894.03

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As tenants of any premises, it is their responsibility to ensure that the bills of the place they are staying in are paid and kept up to date.

However, recently a real estate agent Rizal Nasir shared a photo of a Tenaga Nasional Berhad (TNB) electricity bill that showed a pending amount of RM21,894.03.

The photo is credited to a fellow real estate negotiator Rubi Hasman.

Rizal shared his take on cases where tenants leave behind unpaid utility bills.

In the case of the RM21,894.03 bill, it is learned that the amount had been accumulated over four years and the house was then put up for auction.

Rizal said in cases where tenants were irresponsible concerning utility bills, the homeowners should “prepare for the worse and hope for the best.”

He advised landlords to be dilligent in checking the bills instead of leaving it entirely up to their tenants.

This issue was also shared on Twitter Malaysia Most Viral.

PENYEWA KELUARGA DARI NERAKA tinggalkan tunggakan bil elektrik RM 21,894.03 pic.twitter.com/n2wrXbKx6v
— MALAYSIA MOST VIRAL (@MALAYSIAVIRALLL) January 7, 2024

Many raised the question as to why TNB did not cut the power supply before allowing the bill to skyrocket.

Pelik tul bilnya sampai gitu.. takkan tak kena potong..🤔 cam pelik je @Tenaga_Nasional .
— TikTok @ttshoptic (@ttshoptic) January 7, 2024

ni rumah apa sampai 21k? kalau nak kata banyak bulan, xsilap 6 bulan je dah nak kena potong.
— 🦊Ehan_ (@yourMaleCare) January 7, 2024

RM21,894 jumlah bil?
Kalau bil dia sebulan RM200 (based on current bill of RM184 – lihat caj semasa), bermakna tunggakan happened over 109 months!
That's 9 long years.
TNB really very understanding tak buat "bekalan terganggu kerana tunggakan"
Ada cerita lain ni…
— AbahAtok (@zainisaari) January 7, 2024

Hat peliknya awat @Tenaga_Nasional tak potong lekrik selepas tak bayaq bil berbulan². Mcm ada benda yang tak kena belah TNB.
— Abu Attasto (@adzdin) January 7, 2024

TNB responded to this question by stating that it depends on the Kedai Tenaga to issue the directive on cutting off the electricity at the premises.

TNB also added that they will not cut the electricity even if there is a high pending amount if the premises is locked as they cannot trespass.

Hi @adzdin. Arahan pemotongan adalah bergantung kepada pihak Kedai Tenaga. Pihak TNB tidak akan melakukan pemotongan walaupun mempunyai tunggakan tinggi sekiranya premis berkunci kerana pihak TNB tidak boleh menceroboh premis tanpa kebenaran daripada pemilik akaun. TQ – Ilyana
— Tenaga Nasional (@Tenaga_Nasional) January 7, 2024

A quick check with TNB on unpaid electricity bill found that the power supply to a premises would be cut if no payment is recieved up to a certain point unless the account owner has negotiated an instalment plan with TNB.

The other explanation is that TNB is not able to access the premises without the owner’s permission.

Meanwhile, Rubi in another Facebook post said that the bill can be waived for a potential buyer who buys the property in an auction.

The waiver however would only be granted to the buyer of the house but the bill still needs to be settled by the previous owner.

Rubi also said TNB needs to get permission from the owner of the house if they are to enter the premises.

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