✔ 最佳答案
It depends if the utilities in question has been discontinued.
As soon as the utilities in question has never been discontinued, the landlord is within his/her rights to force the transfer of liability.
(By the way - in term of the issue of late payment, to determine if a payment is late, it depends on the lease signed and the landlord's practice on collecting the payment. The deadlines on the actual utility bills have no bearing in this case.
In other word, you can be late for payment even the utility payment has not yet due.)