Utility Billing Rights in Alabama

No specific RUBS regulation. Landlords may allocate utility costs if disclosed in lease.

Alabama does not require sub-metering to bill tenants individually. Landlords can use allocation methods like RUBS instead.

Alabama allows landlords to add administrative fees to utility charges. There is no statutory cap on the markup percentage, which means your landlord sets the number.

Without a statutory cap, the only real check on markups is your lease. If the lease says “actual cost plus admin fee” but doesn't define the admin fee, you should ask for the master bill and compare what the utility company charged versus what you paid. A 30% markup on water is not “administrative.”

Alabama does not have a statute requiring landlords to show you the master utility bill. But “not required” is different from “can refuse.”

Send a written request for the master bill and a breakdown of how your share was calculated. Most property managers comply because refusing looks bad in court. If they ignore you, that refusal strengthens your case in a dispute — a judge will wonder what they're hiding.

Alabama Public Service Commission

Phone: 1-800-392-8050

Website: https://psc.alabama.gov

File complaint with Alabama PSC or pursue in small claims court.

1. Get the master bill. Request it in writing. You want the total amount the utility company charged, the billing period, and the number of units being billed.
2. Do the math yourself. Divide the master bill by the number of units (or by square footage, if that's the allocation method). Compare that to what you were charged. If there's a gap, that gap is either a markup or an error.
3. Dispute in writing. Email your landlord with the numbers. Cite Ala. Code § 35-9A-204 if applicable. State the specific amount you believe you were overcharged and what remedy you want.
4. Escalate if needed. If your landlord ignores you or refuses to adjust, file a complaint with the Alabama Public Service Commission and consider small claims court in the county where the property is located.

• Your bill doesn't match your usage. You live alone in a studio and your water bill is $90/month. That is not your water — that is a building-wide cost being split unevenly.
• The billing company is not the utility company. If your “utility bill” comes from a third-party RUBS provider instead of the actual utility, your landlord is using a billing middleman — and that middleman charges fees that get passed to you.
• Your bill went up but nothing changed. Same unit, same habits, same season — but your utility charge jumped 20%. That spike likely reflects a change in how the landlord allocates costs, not a change in your usage.
• You can't find the billing method in your lease. If your lease says “tenant pays utilities” but doesn't specify the method (RUBS, sub-metered, flat fee), that vagueness works in your favor during a dispute.
• Your landlord refuses to share the master bill. This is the biggest red flag. If they have nothing to hide, the bill takes 30 seconds to forward.