#AITA for refusing to foot a portion of a bill I’m not responsible for as karma? 💸
## Background Story:
For some background, I (22F) live in an apartment with four roommates. Each month, we have to pay an energy bill. The bill is in one roommate’s name and each of the other three roommates will venmo one fourth of the bill to the one roommate who pays it. Last year the bill was in my roommate (24F) (who we will call Lauren)’s name. Lauren moved out 8 months ago and the bill was put in my name instead. When she lived with us, Lauren was extremely messy, I’m talking roaches and ants in her pantry, and would never clean. She was also a hoarder and had tons of her belongings hanging out everywhere in the house. When she moved out, she left two years worth of old food in the kitchen. I repeatedly contacted her to come clean out her stuff and she flat out never responded to me. Because I was still living there, she would not be fined for the stuff left behind as it could be pawned off as mine. It took me 3 days and around 15 full garbage bags to clean out all of her stuff before the new roommates moved in. Same case with her belongings; they were left scattered everywhere in the house, and I had to take several trips to goodwill to get rid of all of her stuff. She also took my favorite pair of jeans and refused to give them back.
## Present Situation:
Fast forward to present day, she texts me and my old roommates out of the blue to tell us that she forgot to pay the last energy bill before she left (i.e. the August 2023 bill). The bill totals $433, and she asked us if we could each venmo me for a fourth of the bill. The bill is legitimate and there are no late fees tacked onto it, so I am of course going to pay for my fourth. However, one of my other roommates is refusing to pay, saying she moved out before her lease expired so shouldn’t have to pay the final bill she wasn’t there for. Lauren is now putting it on me to contact the other roommate (because she won’t respond to Lauren anymore) and ask her to pay her fourth. She says if she won’t pay up, me and the other roommate should cover a third, instead of a fourth, of this bill, because “she can’t cover both portions.”
## The Dilemma:
My question is, am I in the wrong for refusing to pay more than my fair fourth of the bill? I am definitely holding a grudge against Lauren for ghosting me and leaving that mess for me to deal with, but I don’t want my grudge to cloud my judgment. I can cover a third of the bill if needed, but is it fair for me to do so? Or should I stick to only paying my fair share?
### Here are some points to consider:
– Each roommate is responsible for their share of the bill, regardless of when they moved out
– The bill is under Lauren’s name, so technically, she should be responsible for ensuring it is paid
– Lauren’s past behavior of leaving a mess and not responding should be taken into account when deciding fair shares
– Consider discussing with all roommates to come to a fair agreement on how to split the bill
– Keep in mind the impact on your relationship with Lauren and other roommates when making a decision
At the end of the day, it’s important to consider what is fair and reasonable in this situation. It’s understandable to feel frustrated about the past actions of a roommate, but try to approach the current issue with a level head and fairness in mind. If you feel uncomfortable covering more than your fair share of the bill, communicate that respectfully to your roommates and work towards a solution that everyone can agree on. Remember, karma has a funny way of working things out in the end. 🌟🏡
NTA. You should also add a charge for the cleanup and hauling/dumping work she made you do, and deduct that from what you owe her.
NTA. You’re already generously not charging he for the cleanup. Paying 1/3 is great for her, but beyond the original bargain. If she’d been a great roommate, you might be inclined to go for it.
She hasn’t been even a good roommate and doesn’t deserve for you to go above and beyond. She’s owed money by that one roommate, and it’s up to her to collect it.
Well, I mean, if the other roommate wasn’t actually living there, then the remaining three WOULD owe a third. That *would be* your fair share of the bill.
I don’t blame you for feeling petty. I would have calculated the approximate cost to clean up Lauren’s shit and forwarded her an invoice saying “I will pay my portion minus the cost of this cleaning invoice.”
I dunno, up to you. NTA, I guess.
NTA, I also wouldn’t pay anything, the time you spent and property you lost must be worth more than $108.
Tally up the hours you spent cleaning up her shit over the three days plus gas and subtract $108, then send her a bill.
NTA. Honestly you’re a saint for paying your share of the bill. I’d be tempted to look at what a cleaning service would charge per hour, and deduct that, plus if I’m reading this right, it took her nearly a year to follow up on this? I’d send her the money, express how frustrating it is for her to ask you to do more work given the situation she left you to deal with, and never communicate again.
NTA. And if I were you, I’d deduct the time/energy/gas/trash bags it took to clean out her mess from your 1/4 of the energy bill. She is free to contact your other roommate herself and argue for her portion of the bill, but if she refuses, I guess Lauren will have to eat the cost.
NTA. Pay your 1/4 and let Lauren figure it out. She can always go to small claims court to get the other roommate’s money.
NTA. And I personally don’t think you should pay for your share of it either. Her attitude when she stole from you and left you with a multi-day cleaning project was basically “too bad – that’s your problem now”, so that would be my attitude towards this bill.
NTA. Pay your 25% of the bill and it’s the bill holders name to get the rest from the other roommates. If it goes to small claims court, so be it. Just make sure you pay in a way you can prove, if you Venmo notate that it’s for your portion of the August 2023 bill and screen shoot the payment.
And technically, while you did provide clean up service (and other issues like stolen clothes) that’s independent of the electric bill so you could go to small claims court for reimbursement of your time but I wouldn’t take it out of the electricity payment.
And as far as the ex roommate that won’t pay, if that roommate was released from the rental agreement (or signed a sublet agreement) prior to August 2023 then I agree they may not owe however if they just moved out but were still legally on the lease, they may be on the hook for that bill. At least in my experience.
NTA however I would be charging her per hour for the time you spent clearing out her belongings and food plus the cost of replacing your jeans and I would deduct that from the 1/4 share of the electric bill. She was happy to ghost you when you needed her but suddenly now it’s supposed to be your priority.
If fourth roommate was still on the lease and hadn’t been replaced yet, they owe their portion of the utilities bill. Responsibility for payment is determined by being on the lease, not by being physically in the apartment.
NTA
NTA for the last energy bill in the roommates name, all owe their respective share for that bill, even the one that’s refusing to pay for you all used the energy around the house for that month (billing period).
NTA – after she refused to clean up her stuff, I would consider that other amount her fee for you cleaning her crap up.
NTA, if she had paid the bill on time she wouldn’t be having issues tracking down the other roommate for their portion. Pay your share and block her on everything.
Nta she can take them to court if she wants. Pay your fourth as agreed and tell her to stop bothering you.
NTA
She’s ghosting you when you want something from her. 2 can play that game.
She stole your jeans and left you to clean up after her. I’d say you’re even.
Yeah – I’m not entirely clear about the 4th roommate. Lauren seems to think that person owes a share but Laurens issue is that this person won’t respond.
Honestly – I’d just go with that. Lauren asked for a 1/4, so pay a 1/4. THe fact that the 4th roomie is ghosting her – not your problem. Let them hash it out.
And it’s not on you to contact this girl. I’d actually probably be pretty blunt – “not my problem, just like you decided leaving all your crap behind wasn’t your problem either.” and then just stop responding!
Thanks everyone for your help and advice. I think I’m going to just pay my fourth and then cut contact. If she keeps hounding me maybe I’ll say something along the lines of how she should be thanking ME for not taking money off my fourth as a cleaning charge.
NTA
I wouldn’t pay her anything. I would tell her that between the cost of the jeans she stole, and what it cost you in time and gas to clean up her mess and take all of her stuff to be donated. You’ve already covered your share of the bill and that’s on her. It’s nine months it’s her problem.
You need to deduct the cost for the jeans she stole and the cost of cleaning up after her when she moved out from the quarter of the bill.
There are free invoice templates all over online. I’m sure the cost of your jeans, plus the cost of several hours labor at a reasonable rate, will be more than a third of the bill. Send her the invoice and ask her if she’s like to settle up (aka pay YOU for your time) or if she’s like to just call it a wash and not contact you again. NTA
NTA
Send her a bill for the cleaning in the amount of your 1/4, if you want to be petty (I would).
Under no circumstances should you pay more than 1/4.
Info: did you only venmo her for the bill when asked? Just wondering If there’s a chance you already paid her for that bill and then she didn’t actually pay it.
Subtract your cleaning up her shit + the jeans then we call it even. NTA.
NTA. Yes, your share of the bill would be a third since there were only three of you that month, but before you pay it, you should send her an invoice for the cost of your stolen jeans plus the hours of labor you put in cleaning and the cost of gas/wear and tear on your car. Pretty sure she owes you far more than the whole electric bill.
First of all it’s not your responsibility to run down old roommates or pay their portion so absolutely not. You’re only responsible for 1/4.
However, not so fast. I would find out the average per hour charge in your area for house cleaners and trash removers, add up all the hours you spent cleaning up after her and put that in a spreadsheet to show itemized and total cost. Also add the cost of your jeans (discounted to a reasonable price if they were not new). I bet it comes out to be more than your fourth of the energy bill.
NTA
I’d tell her to go f herself. You spent how many hours cleaning her filth? I’d tell her your portion of the bill was used to clean the mild and cockroaches she left. This is her karma
Nta
Agree with those recommending you deduct your time cleaning and cost of supplies and gas before you give her anything. At the very least, the time it took. And because it was so gross, you deserve to be compensated at the highest level of pay.
She knows darn well she left a mess and she isn’t sorry. She laid it on you. Who else was going to clean it up?
And the jeans. She straight up stole the jeans.
Lauren can pay up and consider it as a payment for leaving you to deal with her shit.
NTA
NTA And I wouldn’t pay your share either. Consider it a charge for the labor of cleaning her shit up and her being a thief. That would be more karmaish. My literal text would be “I want my jeans replaced and to be compensated for my time cleaning your crap out of the apartment. Do you want to go there?”
UPDATE: I texted her earlier. This is what I said:
If [4th roommate] doesn’t want to pay, that’s between you and her. I will pay my fourth later this week but that is it, especially considering the hours of work I had to do cleaning up all of the food and items you left me to deal with last summer.
I also want to note that I am inclined to pay because I am in a much better financial situation than she is. I can afford my portion of the bill and then some comfortably, and she clearly cannot. I think my guilt about this fact is also clouding my decision.
NTA—and I wouldn’t pay at all until she gives you the pants back
If you remove the price of the stolen jeans and the hours you spent cleaning her mess, how much is left of your part to pay? Probably not much is not nothing. I would do the maths and pay her or not in consequences…
NTA. Tell Lauren to deal with her own stuff.
Frankly I would have refused to pay and called kt a cleaning fee for all the work you had to do plus the jeans.
NTA it’s Lauren’s problem that she forgot about the bill and no longer has contact to the other ex-roommate, not yours. Only cover 1/4 and not a penny more.
You do not owe her your time chasing other roommates. That’s a her problem.
You do owe her for your portion minus the cost of your stolen jeans. Enjoy the moment when you tell her that.
And remind her she is lucky you are not charging her a cleaning fee for all the filth she left behind.
NTA
You should really pay 1/4 of the bill but subtract the cost of the stolen jeans, subtract your wage/salary for three days of cleaning, subtract the cost of any bags and cleaning equipment that was required to clean up her crap, and and also subtract petrol money for the trips to goodwill. Then pay her the rest, sending her an itemised list of what you subtracted and why.
No TA – this would be karma.
NTA. If there is no legal link between that energy bill and you, don’t pay anything. It was and is her responsibility, and since you already paid her for that month’s portion, so you don’t owe her or the energy company anything. If she didn’t use the money you gave her for the bill on the bill, that’s not your fault and not your problem.
Do go look in Venmo ASAP to find and document where you sent her the money for the bill (and hopefully you labeled the transaction well). Also, find where the Venmo money came from, if it wasn’t straight out of any existing Venmo balance, whether from your bank account or a credit card, and document that as well. Now you have a chain of evidence that she was sent the money appropriately, and anything after that was not your responsibility.
NTA
You are kind to even give her 1/4 after she forced you to clean up her mess. I would be deducting the time I used to clean up her crap from the 1/4 and tell her that she is on her own getting the others to pay up.
You’re better than I am. I’d personally just not respond to her. Bill is in her name. It’s over 6 months old at this point and you cleaned up enough shit of hers to be worth more than whatever the bill was. She really has absolutely no legal recourse so it’s just up to you on how petty you choose to be and if the $115 doesn’t mean that much to you.
Tell her you’ll pay 1/3 of the bill if she is willing to compensate you for the time and effort it took to clean out her shit. I’m sure the compensation for your time and effort (even at a very reasonable rate) would far surpass the less than $150 your 1/3 portion of the bill would require. You should stiff her for the whole bill and tell her to get lost. She wasn’t responsive when you were trying to get her to take care of her responsibilities why should you be responsive to her now?
NTA
I’d reply with an itemized statement of the cost of the jeans she took, the cleaning supplies, gas for running stuff to goodwill and charge an hourly rate for the time you spent cleaning up after her.
NTA
NTA. You might want to hold out your fourth of the bill until she returns your jeans. That would be petty justice. Or present her with a cleaning bill, deduct that from your fourth of the bill.
If not, just pay your fourth. You are under no obligation to act as her collection service. It’s a nasty job.
I wouldn’t even pay her your fourth. NtA
Like everyone said, I would subtract cleaning fees. Especially if you documented/ took pictures of how she left everything, I wouldn’t pay.
BUT ALSO—call the company and see a copy of this bill to make sure she’s not making this up. This sounds super suspicious.
NTA at all, but for sure don’t pay more than 1/4 regardless.
NTA. Personally I wouldn’t pay her a penny if she stole from me and left me a hideous mess to clean up. Tell her to sue you if she wants the money, and also let her know you aren’t going to act as her collection agent for the other roommates. Let her deal with it.
Im pretty as fuck; it’s not my name on the bill I wouldn’t pay a dime.