Coliban Water has a range of hardship support measures for customers who face payment difficulties.
Managing Director Damian Wells said: “We understand that households and businesses may be significantly impacted by coronavirus (COVID-19) at this time.
“We’re here to help and if customers have any concerns about their ability to pay their bill, please get in touch to discuss the options. Our staff are friendly, respectful and confidential.
“We have recently partnered with Anglicare Victoria who can support families with financial counselling and access to practical help.
“There will be no increase in the average residential customer’s annual water bill in its new fees and charges from 1 July this year.
“We made a commitment to keep our prices lower than inflation in our five-year pricing plan, submitted to the Essential Services Commission in 2018.
“We’re now into the third year of our Pricing Submission and have continued to meet our commitment to keep prices lower than inflation.
“We are funded by our customers and our fees and charges are in place to recover the costs of providing services, including investment in infrastructure, to provide a standard of services customers expect and value,” said Mr Wells.
In 2018 the water industry regulator the Essential Services Commission (ESC) reviewed prices for Coliban Water for the five-year period 1 July 2018 to 30 June 2023.
“The ESC’s role is to review our price submission every five years to ensure pricing, service levels and works programs are justified, and costs and charges are fair,” said Mr Wells.
“Customers in our region, from all customer segments, helped to inform our submission during our 18-month community engagement program. We will be engaging with our customers within the next 12 months to involve them in the development of our next pricing submission for the period from 2023 to 2028.
“Our focus is customer affordability but our prices have to reflect our investment in fit-for-purpose infrastructure to meet the challenges of climate change and growth.
“A key strategic direction of Strategy 2030, our 10-year plan to achieve our vision of Water to Live, Grow and Enjoy, is to partner with industry and government to build water services that support business, industry and employment,” said Mr Wells.
For more information on pricing for 2020/21, see our Fees and charges page on our website, which includes a residential pricing estimator, or call our Customer Support Team on 1300 363 200.
Last updated on 01 Jul 2020