Riga tenant upset after waste bill includes a person who does not live in the flat

A woman renting a flat in Riga has described on social media an unexpected change in her utility costs: after she declared her residence at the rented address, the waste management charge on her bill was calculated for two people. The case shows that the rent set in a lease is only part of a tenant's total expenses.

What happened

The woman has lived in the flat alone for a year and a half. She recently declared her place of residence there, and her next bill from Rīgas namu pārvaldnieks (RNP, the Riga building management company) came with a higher waste charge. Previously she paid roughly eight to ten euros a month; now the amount is close to 20 euros.

When she told the landlady, she received only a brief reply: “Omg, that's one expensive trash bin!” The conversation ended there. The tenant writes that the sum is not too much for her, but the principle matters: in her view it is unfair to ask her to pay for a person who does not actually live in the flat. She also says the landlady has not provided a washing machine for a year and a half, even though the one in the flat did not work when she moved in.

Views in the discussion

Commenters offered several explanations and solutions:

• One suggested the owner herself might be registered there, but the tenant replied that the landlady's declared residence is in another part of the city.
• Another commenter advised asking the landlady to remove the second person from the register if that person does not live there.
• One participant thought the tenant should have checked the registration terms beforehand.
• Some said their leases include a specific clause allowing them to declare residence, and stressed that the law permits registration at a home where a person has a legal basis to live.
• One woman said that in a previous rental the owners' family was registered, and they adjusted the bill by subtracting the people who did not actually live there.
• Others thought she should simply keep paying.

What to consider

If utility charges depend on the number of registered residents, tenants should find out in good time how they are calculated and what to do if the bill includes a person who does not live in the flat.