Ofwat has launched a new consultation in response to an urgent proposal from Castle Water to make changes to the Customer Protection Code of Practice (CPCoP) in light of current and evolving Covid-19 restrictions.
The water sector regulator says the retailer's proposal "warrants further scrutiny" but in order to progress it Ofwat needs further information and evidence from stakeholders that Castle Water will not be able to obtain itself.
Castle Water has raised concerns about the practical constraints retailers are experiencing with accessing and reading internal meters due to Covid-19 restrictions.
According to the water retailer this is resulting in a backlog of meters that require a meter reading to be scheduled. The Code of Practice requires retailers to ensure that non-household customers receive at least one accurate bill or invoice a year, using a meter read where the supply is metered. The CPCoP says that a retailer can also choose to accept a read taken by the relevant non-household customer.
Castle Water is proposing that a retailer should be able to bill or invoice a customer based on ‘estimated consumption’:-
- where the retailer is unable to read an internal meter because of Covid-19; and
- where the customer has been asked to provide a read within a reasonable period but has been unable or unwilling to do so, or has not responded.
Ofwat is seeking input to understand the impact that Covid-19 restrictions are having on all retailers’ capability to actively read internal meters and the extent this is an issue for retailers. The regulator is also asking retailers who say that internal meter reading is an issue how long they consider it will take them to return to preCovid-19 meter reading levels
Ofwat will review the responses and expects to publish its decision in early 2021.
The regulator intends to share the information gathered with market operator MOSL to establish a better understanding of the current levels of meter reading data being input into CMOS across the market.
Deadline to submit responses is Friday, 8 January 2021 – click here to download the consultation document.
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