New rules on rental housing enforced today stipulate a maximum fine of NT$500,000 for landlords who overcharge on electricity fees, the Ministry of the Interior said yesterday.
Amendments to the Mandatory and Prohibitory Provisions of Standard Form Contract for Housing Rental (住宅租賃定型化契約應記載及不得記載事項) have been approved by the Executive Yuan and take effect today.
The amendments apply to all newly signed rental housing contracts and would not operate retrospectively, but they are applicable to existing leases if the tenant and landlord consent, the ministry said in a news release yesterday.
Photo: CNA
The new rules aim to make electricity fees of rental housing fairer and more reasonable, as well as prevent disputes about electricity fee overcharging, it said.
The new rules would place restrictions on the price of electricity fees, the ministry said.
The electricity fee per kilowatt-hour (kWh) charged by the landlord cannot exceed the average electricity charge per kWh for the period demanded in the electricity bill, if the tenant and landlord agree to determine the fee by actual usage, it said.
If the fee is not determined by actual usage, the electricity fee charged by the landlord cannot exceed the total amount of electricity charged for the period in the electricity bill, the ministry said.
An extra electricity charge on shared facilities would not allowed if the landlord has not applied to the Taiwan Power (Taipower) for dividing the charge among the tenants, it added.
The landlord would also be required to provide the average electricity charge per kWh for the period and the amount of usage for the tenant’s reference, the ministry said, adding that the tenant can seek further information from Taipower.
Landlords that contravene the new rules would be fined NT$30,000 to NT$300,000 for not making corrections, and would receive an increased fine of NT$50,000 to NT$500,000 if they consistently refuse to correct it, it said, adding that the ministry would request occasional inspections by local governments on lease agreements to ensure tenants’ rights and benefits.
NATIONAL SECURITY: Authorities are working to confirm the identities of the military personnel involved and investigating possible illegal conduct and regulatory violations Authorities are probing possible national security implications after Kinmen police and immigration officers on Sunday found a Chinese woman allegedly posing as a tourist while engaging in prostitution involving more than 10 military personnel. The woman, surnamed Chen (陳), has since been deported, authorities said, adding that investigators are still working to confirm the identities of those implicated, as the records only listed code names and aliases. The case stemmed from a report received by the Kinmen District Prosecutors’ Office on Friday last week from the Jinhu Precinct of the Kinmen County Police Bureau. On Sunday, police, along with the National Immigration
GLOBALGIVING: ‘ Caving to external pressure is not acceptable for an organization that has cultivated justice reform and human rights for 30 years,’ one NGO said A slew of non-government organizations (NGOs) have withdrawn from the GlobalGiving fundraising platform after it announced it would use “Chinese Taipei” instead of “Taiwan” from next month. The Taiwan Good Rice Association wrote on Facebook on Friday that it was informed on April 28 via a teleconference call of the change, which was made because the platform wanted to operate in China. Taiwan Good Rice is to terminate all cooperative relationships with GlobalGiving in response to the platform’s “unilateral and non-negotiable” decision to remove references to Taiwan, the NGO said. “Taiwan is in the official name of Taiwan Good Rice Association and the
HEAVY WEATHER: Typhoon Jangmi is due to crash straight into the Ryukyus as airlines look to shift flights to larger aircraft or cancel flights to Okinawa entirely Taiwan’s international air carriers announced flight adjustments over the weekend as Typhoon Jangmi is forecast to hit the Ryukyu Islands today and tomorrow. The Central Weather Administration (CWA) upgraded Jangmi from a tropical storm to a typhoon at 8am yesterday, with the eye located 580km south of Naha city. It was moving north at 19kph. Today, China Airlines’ CI-120, CI-121, CI-122 and CI-123 flights between Taoyuan and Naha, Okinawa, have been canceled as well as CI-132 and CI-133 between Kaohsiung and Naha. EVA Air’s BR-112, BR-113, BR-186 and BR-185 flights between Taoyuan and Naha are also canceled. Low-cost carrier Tigerair Taiwan canceled IT-230,
Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairwoman Cheng Li-wun (鄭麗文) yesterday briefed her party’s Central Standing Committee regarding her scheduled visit to the US between Monday next week and June 16, saying that her purpose would be to persuade the US that the Republic of China (ROC) Constitution was a “one China” constitution that would foster stable and peaceful cross-strait relations. The ROC Constitution is the most important defense for all Taiwanese citizens, as it upholds our democracy and has contributed to our robust economy, which aligns with international and US interests, she said. “We would not be troublemakers and drag the US under,”
RSS