Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 20 June 2019
210. Deputy Paul Murphy asked the Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government the reason Irish Water treats householders as if they are businesses and charges them for all water used in their property in cases in which the householder has a rain water harvesting system which they rely on exclusively for agricultural purposes; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [25946/19]
View answerThe Water Service (No. 2) Act 2013 includes provision that Irish Water shall collect charges from its non-domestic customers in receipt of water services provided by it in accordance with a water charges plan, as approved by the Commission for the Regulation of Utilities. If a customer considers that his or her charges are not in line with the regulatory regime this should be raised with Irish Water in the first instance.
In its statutory role the Commission also has the power to investigate a complaint made by a registered customer of Irish Water and to issue a decision that is legally binding on Irish Water. These are responsibilities that are assigned to Irish Water and to the CRU and in respect of which I have no role.
It may also be helpful to note that Irish Water has established a dedicated team to deal with representations and queries from public representatives. The team can be contacted via email to oireachtasmembers@water.ie or by telephone on a dedicated number, 1890 578 578.
