Toronto renter left briefly in the dark as landlord didn't pay for power

A Toronto renter had his power cut off Wednesday afternoon because of a misunderstanding with his landlord about who should pay for the service.

Alex Atkinson was surprised to find a hydro technician knocking on his door in North York last week to say his electricity bill was not getting paid and that he would return the following week to disconnect the power if the problem was not solved. 

Atkinson says he called his landlord, who said they would fix the issue, but on Wednesday afternoon, the technician showed up at Atkinson's house again and disconnected his power.

"In our lease, utilities go through the landlord," Atkinson told CBC News. "And now we're finding out with the notices from Enbridge and Toronto Hydro that our utilities are disconnected."

Atkinson says the problem started when his original landlord sold the property in February 2024, and the new landlord didn't transfer the utilities. Since then, he and the other tenants have been getting notices from utility vendors that payment has not been made.

His rental agreement, obtained by CBC News, shows that the landlord is responsible for paying utility vendors, such as Toronto Hydro, Enbridge Gas, and garbage.

It says Atkinson is responsible for covering 70 per cent of the utility costs, which are included in his monthly rent. The other 30 per cent is covered by the basement tenant.

The landlord and property manager are responsible for making the actual payment, says the rental agreement.

Atkinson says he shouldn't be the one to call the service providers to make sure the bills are getting paid. 

"I want to not be in a scenario where I have to call these vendors and say, 'Hey, did this landlord keep the account up to date?" He said.

"I want to have confidence that my services are going to be available. I don't think that's a lot to ask."

The property management called Atkinson, while he was speaking with CBC News, to tell him the issue had been handled, but moving forward, the tenants would be responsible for making utility payments. 

Atkinson told CBC News on Thursday that his power has been restored.

In an email to CBC News, the landlord said he never "disputed" with the renter about who should pay the bills.

"Each party thought someone else was doing it. We have no issues with our tenants. They are wonderful people and have been great, and always pay rent on time," said Dov Zwebner.

Zwebner says he will be more "diligent" moving forward. 

"What happened with the hydro was a classic case of too many cooks in the kitchen and a change in internal property management staff managing this file, and it fell through the cracks, and unfortunately, it came to this point," he said.

Paralegal Denise Ranger, who represents landlords and tenants in Ontario, says landlords are obligated to provide vital services to tenants, such as electricity, water, and gas. 

She says that if Atkinson wasn't able to resolve his issue as quickly as he did, he could have elevated the situation to the Landlord and Tenant Board.

"The landlords could be facing fines, and it could put the tenant in a position of being able to file an application for a loss of services or a loss of vital services, and those are very serious," she told CBC News.