Higher than usual water bills explained

Published on 17 April 2020

A combination of early meter readings before Christmas and rainfall hitting an 80 year low have caused some residents of the Rockhampton Region to receive higher water bills than normal recently.

Rockhampton Regional Council CEO, Evan Pardon, explained that while variations across the year usually even out, the most recent quarter had seen a bit of a double whammy for some customers when it came to the bills.

“There are a few factors in play here: when meter readings are taken, higher than usual usage during some very dry weather, and our tiered pricing structure,” said Mr Pardon.

“To ensure bills were generated before the Christmas shut down, meters were read a little earlier than usual to avoid an extended billing period – but still within the targeted time set under our policy. This meant people’s bills for Q2 covered a slightly shorter period of time than usual, and the bills for Q3 covered a slightly longer period of time than usual.

“During Q2 and Q3 we also saw an increase in water usage thanks to the drier weather – the increase was as high as 26% in some cases.

“Some customers have therefore found themselves in a situation where they not only had a longer billing period but also used significantly more water, which pushed some of their consumption into the higher pricing tier.”

Mr Pardon said those affected are encouraged get in touch with Council so that Fitzroy River Water could review their individual bill, and where appropriate make an adjustment.

“We have over 30,000 customers and only a small number have been impacted by this, but those who are concerned about their water bill and wish to have it checked should give us a call on 1300 22 55 77.

“We are planning to review how water is priced and charged to ensure we can keep the costs fair and evenly spread throughout the year.” 

Further information on water meters and billing can be found here.