Customer with large water bill has Concealed Leak Application denied

When a customer’s water provider denied their Concealed Leak Application, the customer was deeply worried about their near $8,000 water bill. Here’s how we helped.

Sarita* received a high water bill and discovered it was due to a concealed water leak in her home. After the leak was repaired, she submitted a Concealed Leak Application to her water provider.

Sarita’s application was denied. With the stress of her near $8,000 bill looming, Sarita turned to EWOQ for help.

How EWOQ helped

Concealed leaks can be hard to detect and locate and are often an unexpected financial burden. It’s a requirement of the Southeast Queensland Water and Wastewater Code that water providers have a Concealed Leaks Policy. These policies outline what needs to be done to successfully apply for financial assistance if a customer is impacted by a concealed leak.

Under Sarita’s water provider’s policy, she needed to have the water leak repaired within one month of being notified by her provider that she had high water usage. EWOQ found that as Sarita did not meet this deadline, the water provider was within their rights under their policy to deny her application.

Outcome

After working with EWOQ on Sarita’s case, the water provider decided to apply a credit of over $2,500 to Sarita’s account as a gesture of goodwill. This is the amount she would have been awarded if her Concealed Leaks Application had been successful. The water provider also offered Sarita a long-term interest free payment arrangement for the remaining debt on her account.

Sarita was relieved that she was able to get the debt paid off in a more manageable way.

What can you do?

If you ever notice you have unusually high water usage it’s important to check for concealed leaks and get them repaired as soon as possible if you find one. Make sure to always check your water provider’s Concealed Leak Policy and ensure you follow any instructions to ensure you get your application approved.

If you’re worried about a concealed leak, here are some tips on how you can check your property for water leaks.