Utility bills
Which bills you are obliged to pay will vary depending on which landlord/letting agency you are renting with. However, it’s likely you will be responsible for payment of all the utilities you use, i.e. gas, electricity, water and telephone. You will also have to pay council tax for the property, if you are liable for this. It’s recommended that all housemates give their names to utility companies, instead of just one person’s. This ensures all tenants are responsible for the payment of bills and if there’s a problem with a late payment you will all be held accountable.

It’s important that as soon as you move into a property you register with the appropriate utility companies and give them any meter readings. This guarantees that you don’t end up paying for any gas/electricity used by the previous tenants. You should also inform the company of the meter reading before you leave the property.

TV licence
A colour TV licence costs £139.50 a year. Any student using television equipment without a valid TV licence risks prosecution and a fine of up to £1000.

Each room in a hall of residence is a separately occupied place and so if you have a TV in your room you will need your own licence. If you are going to be sharing a house and have individual tenancy agreements your room is considered a separately occupied place and so again if you have a TV in your room you will need your own TV licence. However, if your house is treated as one place shared by all (a joint tenancy agreement indicates this) then one TV licence covers all TVs within the accommodation.

You can claim a refund for any completely unused quarter on your TV licence. In order to obtain a refund for the summer quarter (July, August and September) you need to buy your TV licence at the beginning of your first term.

Council Tax
Generally, if you are a full time student you will NOT be liable for council tax. This remains the case even if you are in residence with one or more non-students, that is, it will be the responsibility of the non-students to cover the council tax costs. The rules are more complicated for part-time students. For further information on council tax liability and students look at the NUS Welfare Unit’s in-depth information sheet, click here.

Click here for details of council tax charges in York for 2007/08.