ORGANISING THE UTILITY SERVICES
In order to change the details of ownership of utiliities for the property, various forms must be completed, signed and administered at the relevant electric, telephone,  water and gas companies.

Copies of your NIE or Residencia, and the Copia Simple Escritura must also be produced in the case  of water and gas changes. It is strongly advisable to set up direct debits for the utilities if you are not living at the property all year round, and these can be administered with the relevant companies and your bank at the same time as the name change details are lodged. I recommend that you ask the bank for a list of your direct debits, and keep an eye on your monthly bank statements to check the relevant payments have gone out of your account.

Mistakes can and do occur, and in the case of water, electric and telephone services, non-payment of a bill could result in your supply being cut off. If this is the case, you will be charged a reconnection fee and it may take up to 48 hours to reconnect the service. With regard to the telephone line, Telefonica will suspend the service for up to three months (during which time you can receive but not make calls) and then disconnect the line altogether and allocate the telephone number elsewhere. So a quick check of what is happening on your account is definitely worthwhile!