Hope the landlord is transparent about electricity bills
According to records, most landlords apply electricity prices for workers from 3,000 - 3,500 VND/kWh. Meanwhile, current rented rooms are applied electricity prices at levels from 101 - 200kWh, equivalent to about 2,380.39 VND/kWh (excluding 8% VAT).
Mr. Thap - owner of a boarding house in Bau village (Thien Loc commune, Hanoi city) used to have nearly 30 rooms, but now it has shrunk to only a few rooms for rent. He said that the boarding house is old, nearly 20 years old, so it is degraded, although rented at a cheap price, it is still picky about workers renting.
Currently, his room rate is 500,000 VND, electricity bill is 3,000 VND/kWh, water is 50,000 VND/person.
Mr. Thap said that the electricity price of 3,000 VND/kWh applied to workers is appropriate because the retail price of domestic electricity is about 2,380 VND/kWh, plus the cost of general lighting and operation electricity.
Similarly, Ms. Tam - the landlord in Hau Duong village (Thien Loc commune) who rents 8 rooms for rent is also applying a rate of 3,000 VND/kWh, water 25,000 VND/person.
Mr. Hoa (Bau village) has 22 rented rooms, most of whom are workers working in Thang Long Industrial Park.
He informed that the current selling price of voltage for workers is 3,000 VND/kWh, water is 25,000 VND/m3. According to Mr. Hoa, boarding houses are applied a level from 101 - 200kWh but must calculate camera items, common lighting, so these items must be added to the electricity price to maintain operation.
Meanwhile, many workers believe that it is necessary to clearly separate domestic electricity bills and shared usage fees to avoid the situation of "combining together" causing tenants to pay higher than reality.
Mr. Hau - a worker renting a room in Hanoi - said that his room in Hau Duong village has been charged 3,500 VND/kWh for many years. At peak heat times, his family uses about 140 kWh of electricity, and has to pay nearly 500,000 VND.
According to Mr. Hau, the landlord explained that the difference is due to tenants having to pay electricity for lighting the yard, corridors and pumping water together.
Collecting incorrect electricity prices may be fined up to 30 million VND
From May 25, Decree 133/2026 officially takes effect. According to regulations, violations of regulations on electricity use will be administratively sanctioned, fined from 20 - 30 million VND for landlords who collect electricity bills from tenants higher than regulations in cases of buying electricity at retail electricity prices for domestic purposes.
Mr. Hau believes that this penalty level is necessary to limit the situation of landlords arbitrarily raising electricity prices.
Mr. Nguyen Van Ba - a worker renting a room near Thang Long Industrial Park - shared that his family is paying 3,000 VND/kWh of electricity. During the peak hot month, his family uses up 300 kWh of electricity, equivalent to about 900,000 VND.
According to Mr. Ba, tenants should only pay for domestic electricity according to regulations, and common lighting or water pumping electricity should be included in the service fee instead of being included in the electricity bill.
Regarding the handling of violations, Ms. Vu Thuy Trang - Deputy Director of YouMe Law Company Limited - said that according to regulations on sanctioning administrative violations in electricity operations, the Chairman of the commune-level People's Committee has the authority to sanction cases where landlords collect electricity bills not in accordance with regulations.
When discovering that the landlord charges high electricity prices, tenants can report to the People's Committee of the ward or commune where they reside or notify the electricity authority to coordinate inspection and handling according to regulations.
