“Families in Limerick to Pay Bill for Private Consultants despite massive reduction in free allowances for children Irish Water is blackmailing people re PPS Number

We finally have confirmation that the massive consultancy bill paid during the setting up of Irish Water will be borne by customers in Limerick and across the country. The manner in which the Government tried to hide the massive cost of private consultants and the way in which the scale of it was finally revealed did enormous damage to the credibility of this quango. It is wrong that families in Limerick will be footing some of these costs directly through their new bills.

It is also disappointing that the Regulator and the Government did not explain the dramatic reduction in free allowances for children, cut a massive 44% from 38,000 litres to 21,000 litres. The Government have also failed to put in place a fair scheme for people who cannot afford to pay the water charges or even drink the water they are provided with.

I also believe it is wrong that the Government have allowed Irish Water to blackmail people by insisting that they provide their PPS numbers in order to claim allowances. There is no rational explanation for this requirement for PPS numbers by Irish Water.

Yours sincerely,

Willie”

Water charges

The following are the charges that will be applied for public water services from 1 October 2014:

• There is no standing charge for domestic customers.
• VAT is not applicable.
• The volume of water supplied is assumed to be equal to the volume of wastewater removed.
• Water services are measured in m3 (1 m3 = 1 cubic metre = 1,000 litres).
• Bills will normally be issued quarterly.

Assessed charges are based on the number of adults in a household. This equates to a

charge of €176 for a household with one adult and approximately an extra €102 for every

extra adult living in the household, for both water services. The assessed charge is calculated on the basis of 66,000 litres of consumption for a single adult household plus 21,000 litres for each additional adult. The charge is half for only one service. Please see the table below as an example.

Example of Annual Assessed Charge

Allowances

Household water services allowance: 30m3 (30,000 litres) per service per annum for the primary residence of the account holder and is applicable per household.

Children’s water services allowance: 21m3 (21,000 litres) per service per annum for children qualifying for child benefit at their place of primary residence.

Note: Any unused allowances will be carried forward within the year.

Metered charges

Charges are based on the volume of water supplied.

Water supplied: €2.44 per m3

Wastewater removed: €2.44 per m3

Note: Metered bills will be capped at the relevant unmetered charge for 9 months after the start date of your first metered bill ie. until the end of June 2015. Where a customer’s metered water consumption is shown to be less than the assessed consumption used in the assessed charge, a rebate will be given to the customer after a period of 6 months.

Unmetered charges

Charges are based on an assessment of the volume of water supplied.
The assessment of volume is dependent on the number of occupants declared to be living at the domestic property being supplied as per the table above.

Water Support payment

Water Support payment of €25 per quarter (€100 per annum) from the Department of Social Protection is paid directly to recipients of the Household Benefits Package and those in receipt of the Fuel Allowance Scheme.

Not permanently occupied charge

When a domestic property is not permanently occupied the not permanently occupied charge applies:

• €62.50 per annum per service (water supply or wastewater services)
• €125 per annum for both services

Water unfit for Human Consumption

Customers will receive a 100% discount on the water supply element of their charge

where the water is unfit for human consumption, once the boil water notice is in place for

at least 24 hours. In other words, there will be no water supply charge to customers in this

case, but these customers will continue to be charged for their wastewater where they are a customer of Irish Water.

Leaks

If Irish Water identifies a water leak in a customer’s premises having installed the meter, the customer’s charges will be capped at the assessed charge until the leak is fixed.

Medical Conditions

Customers with medical conditions which require increased water consumption will be capped at the assessed charge if they have a meter installed. Any water consumed above the assessed charge level will be free of charge.