Service and usage charges policy

1.1 At a glance

This policy explains:

• the services we provide
• how connecting or disconnecting affects the charges on the bill
• the groups and organisations that are exempt from service charges
• how to ask us a question about a bill.

1.2 Scope

This applies to customers that are:

• connected to our water or wastewater system
• in a stormwater area that Sydney Water manage
• in the Rouse Hill area.

1.3 Objective

To explain how Sydney Water applies charges for water, wastewater and stormwater services.

We provide the following services:

• Drinking water for normal domestic purposes.
• Recycled water for gardening, toilets and washing machines.
• Disposal of wastewater (sewage).
• Transport and treatment of stormwater (drainage).
• Trade wastewater and other water services for business and industry.

These services may differ depending on where your property is located and whether it is for residential or business purposes.

Customers are responsible for arranging connections to Sydney Water services. You need to apply to connect online at Sydney Water Tap in.
Ensure you use the services of a licensed plumber, installer or drainer to complete new connections. Fines apply for unauthorised or illegal connections.

You can choose not to connect, or to disconnect, from our water or wastewater services.

If you demolish a building and are not intending to re-build or need to relocate your connection, you must apply to disconnect through Sydney Water Tap in. Once approved, a licensed plumber must remove the connection where it joins the main. The plumber must then confirm the disconnection to stop the charges on your account.

If you are demolishing a building and re-building, you may need to temporarily disconnect the service into the property. A meter must remain installed to measure water use during the re-building period.

If you can supply an alternative water or wastewater system, you can disconnect from Sydney Water's water or wastewater services provided the alternative complies with health, environmental and local council regulations. You must apply to disconnect through Sydney Water Tap in and have the disconnection completed by a licensed plumber. The plumber must then confirm the disconnection to stop the charges on your account.

Charges fall into three main categories:

Service charges:

• Water
• Wastewater (sewerage)
• Stormwater
• Unmetered

Usage charges:

• Water
• Wastewater (sewerage) applies to business customers only

Other charges:

• Trade waste for business customers

2.4.1 Service charges

Service charges are a fixed component of your bill and apply when your property is connected to a Sydney Water service. These charges cover the cost of building and maintaining pipes, pumps and treatment plants.
Most customers receive water and wastewater service charges. Residential customers pay a base charge for each service they are connected to. For business customers, the service charges depend on the size of their meter(s). These charges are raised per quarter and may apply in advance or arrears, depending on when your property's meter read falls within the billing cycle.

You will be charged for a stormwater service if you are the owner of a property that is within one of our declared stormwater drainage areas. This charge is in addition to any stormwater charges applied by your local council. These areas are defined through NSW Legislation and can be searched using the Stormwater catchment map.

For residential customers without a water meter, an unmetered water service charge applies. This incorporates a charge for water use based on average consumption. Non-residential customers without a meter pay an unmetered charge for both water and wastewater.

2.4.2 Usage charges

Usage charges apply to the volume of water and wastewater you use each billing period.

The water usage charge is calculated by the amount of water you use, as measured by a water meter. This includes drinking and recycled water. Your water bill shows you how much water you are using.

If your property is serviced by a common water meter (e.g. a unit in a strata building), a bill for the building's total water usage is issued to your owners corporation. They are responsible for dividing the bill between individual property owners.

Wastewater usage charges apply to non-residential customers only and are based on a percentage of the water used, known as a ‘discharge factor’. This varies according to the type of property or business and the activities occurring at the property.

If we are unable to read the meter at the property, we'll leave a card for you to advise your own reading. If we do not receive a reading, we will estimate your usage based on your property average or the average for your area. It's your responsibility to protect the meter from damage, keep the area around the meter safe and clear and tell us if the meter is behind a locked gate or fence or if there are animals who can access the meter (such as dogs) so we can read it regularly

2.4.3 Other charges

If you are connected to Sydney Water's wastewater system and want to discharge wastewater from a commercial or industrial business process to the sewer, you need Sydney Water's written permission.

Sydney Water accepts trade wastewater that meets our published acceptance standards. Acceptance standards are generally limits applied to the concentration of trade wastewater discharges. A complete list of Sydney Water's acceptance standards is published on the Acceptance standards and charging rates.

Sydney Water has three types of trade wastewater customers:

1. Some customers have deemed processes. Deemed processes discharge small quantities of wastewater to the sewer and are permitted to discharge without negotiating a Commercial Trade Wastewater Permit subject to meeting certain standard pre-treatment equipment and other requirements. These can be found on Commercial trade wastewater.
2. Commercial customers are those with standard commercial processes. These are listed on Trade wastewater fees.
3. Industrial customers are all those engaged in processes that are neither deemed nor commercial processes.

Industrial processes include:

• food processing and manufacturing
• metals and surface coating
• waste processing, disposal and treatment
• oil refineries and oil recycling processes
• larger scale commercial processes, such as smallgoods manufacturers, caterers and meal preparation areas that discharge more than 12,000 litres of trade wastewater a day.

Businesses are responsible for advising us when their processes change, this may affect your bill. Visit Sydney Water Tap in to apply for permission to discharge, vary or cancel your agreement.

2.4.4 Responsibility for charges

Property owners are responsible for paying Sydney Water charges, even if the property is rented and the tenant has agreed to pay water bills. The only exception is trade wastewater agreements where the occupier has accepted responsibility.

2.4.5 Prices

The NSW Independent Pricing and Regulatory Tribunal (IPART) determine the prices of all Sydney Water charges.