Yahneake Sterling, Staff Reporter
Consumers may have to wait another two months to air their concerns about the quality of service they receive from the National Water Commission (NWC), as the Commission has not yet submitted it's tariff review to the Office of Utilities Regulation (OUR).
It was announced earlier this month that the review should have been submitted by mid August.
Initial consultations with consumers were scheduled to begin Monday but David Geddes, director of consumer and public affairs at the OUR, said they had to be pushed back as the NWC has not yet submitted the review.
"We had anticipated that we would have received it earlier, but I have to stress that they (NWC) are not late in submitting it. They could really submit it in September if they so desire or even October," Mr. Geddes said.
According to Mr. Geddes, the input from consumers will help to identify efficiencies and inefficiencies in the system, that could affect the intake of revenue for the NWC as well as whether the Commission is meeting the guaranteed standards.
"If the NWC is not meeting the guaranteed standard, then consumers must make a claim against the company. Then they will be compensated by way of a payment of four times the service charge," Mr. Geddes said.
The NWC's current service charge is $256.26.
Compliance standards
The guaranteed standards that the NWC should comply with include: connection to supply within 10 days after a customer signs the contract; deliver bills within 48 hours after first connection; acknowledge customer complaints within five days and reply within 30 days; and NWC guarantees to provide for a maximum of two months between each meter reading and between bill issues.
However, there are exceptional circumstances in which the guaranteed standards may not apply. These include bad weather or natural disaster, system conditions such as major breakdown on treatment plants or pumping stations, drought, civil unrest, strike and malicious destruction of property.
In the past few weeks, numerous communities across the Corporate Area have been affected by low water supply as the NWC announced that dams are at their lowest.
The NWC has also warned schools to brace themselves for water lock offs.
