Alan Kelly (Tipperary North, Labour) | Oireachtas source

To clarify the situation for mixed use customers who are both domestic customers and non-domestic customers of Irish Water, for example, in the case of an apartment over a shop or a house on a farm. These households are billed separately for both uses, with separate accounts. The charging regime for non-domestic use will remain the same as applied under the relevant local authority, until the regime is reviewed by the Commission on Energy Regulation.

As agents of Irish Water, local authorities are continuing to bill these customers until a new regime is put in place. An allowance is applied for domestic usage and deducted from the metered usage of the premises, so that no payment is made on the non-domestic account for domestic usage. The charge on the domestic usage account will be subject to the relevant capped charge for domestic customers depending on the household type. Where consumption through the meter would lead to a lesser domestic charge than the capped charge, then the customer will be due a rebate on the very same terms as all other domestic customers.

Group water schemes set their own charges and are not regulated by the Commission for Energy Regulation, CER. Group schemes include private schemes, which have no interaction with Irish Water, and public schemes, which receive their water in bulk from public supplies but manage their own networks and set charges for their own customers. These schemes will remain as non-domestic customers of Irish Water for the bulk purchase of water. The current tariff arrangements, as applied by local authorities prior to 1 January 2014, will continue until non-domestic charges are reviewed by the CER. The Department of the Environment, Community and Local Government will work with the group water sector to produce a new investment programme lasting until the end of 2018 and to revise subsidy arrangements so they are aligned as far as possible with the approach to subsidy for public water schemes, but tailored to the particular circumstances of the group water sector. Households in the group water sector who respond to the Irish Water customer registration campaign will be eligible for the €100 water conservation grant, like everybody else.

To avoid any doubt, I want to be clear that it is the occupier of a premises who pays the bill. Legislation states that the owner is the occupier unless the contrary is proven. Irish Water is providing landlords with the opportunity to prove that they are not the occupier by providing the tenant's details. This will allow Irish Water to contact the tenant to complete the registration and bill the tenant. A tenant must register with Irish Water to avail of the water conservation grant, to be billed accurately and to avoid the default capped charges.

I will be introducing legislation in this House allowing landlords to deduct unpaid water charges from their tenant's deposits if necessary.

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