Practical advice to help our customers with sites in England.

15/06/2020

We will keep this page up to date as the Pandemic develops and business needs and regulations change.  Call 0203 750 9300 to discuss with a member of our Customer Service Team.

Customer Protection Code of Practice & Covid-19 Repayment Scheme

Customers who are operating normally and can pay, should pay and are subject to our normal debt collection process.

We will differentiate between Customers who genuinely need support and those who should be expected to pay and will tailor our approach accordingly.

Customers affected by Covid-19 can apply for a repayment scheme detailed below:

Subject to acceptance, the scheme allows the customer to pay their debt over a number of monthly installments.  The application form is here.

Following receipt of the completed application form, the Customers individual circumstances are confidentially and carefully assessed and where appropriate a payment plan is offered.

Covid-19 repayment plan Terms and Conditions:

1. These Terms & Conditions are specific to the Covid-19 repayment plan and take precedence over and add to the current terms and conditions of supply:
2. No interest will be charged when the customers pays in line with the agreed Covid-19 Repayment Scheme. 
3. Disconnection and Charges for Non-payment:   If you do not pay any Charges on or before the due date, we may disconnect the water supply to the relevant Premises. We will reconnect the supply once all outstanding bills have been paid, including the applicable disconnection, reconnection and cost of recovery charges. Our Charges for non-payment/disconnection are as follows;
   
   1. Late payment charge – the greater of £50 or 1% per day of the outstanding amount
   2. If you remain in default after 14 days, we will charge the greater of either a further £100 or 1% per day of the outstanding amount
   3. If you remain in default after 28 days, we will charge the greater of either a further £250 or 1% per day of the outstanding amount
   4. If you remain in default after 56 days, we will charge the greater of either a further £500 or 1% per day of the outstanding amount
   5. After 56 days, non-payment will incur the greater of either a further £10 charge per day for each day you remain in default or 1% per day of the outstanding amount.
   6. Disconnection notice charge - £100 Disconnection visit charge - £500 Disconnection charge - £500 Reconnection charge - £500
4. We reserve the right to amend our payment terms to a rolling deposit paid in advance, in the event you default on any payment due.
5. In addition to the monthly instalments, the current bills must be paid on time.
6. Bills issued prior to March 2020 are subject to late payment charges, unless they are part of an agreed payment plan which is paid on time.
7. During an agreed Repayment Scheme, no amounts owed by the Customer to us are “due” or shall be treated as “due” by us for the purposes of a disconnection notice under section 61(1ZC)(b) of the 1991 Act, and for these purposes only.  All other rights and obligations under our Terms and Conditions of Supply are unaffected by this clause.”
8. Any failure or delay in paying will automatically cancel the Repayment Scheme and the full amount is immediately due. 
9. Failure to pay to the agreed Repayment Plan will lead to disconnection of supplies.

If you disagree with our assessment you can contact solvemyproblem@sesbusinesswater.co.uk with any additional information for a further review.

Customers not affected by Covid 19:

1. Must pay all bills on time to avoid late payment charges.
2. Provide meter reading to meterreading@sesbusinesswater.co.uk to avoid estimated bills.

We are happy to discuss your specific circumstances and help where we can.

Email Repaymentscheme@sesbusinesswater.co.uk with any questions or to arrange a call.

Sites reopening:

Unless you tell us specifically that you are not reopening, we will start billing those sites made Temporarily Vacant Covid 19, when you could open.

If you remain closed, you must email us at query@sesbusinesswater.co.uk with the sites account numbers.  If you do not, we will bill you.

On re-opening, take a water meter read and send it to meterreadings@sesbusinesswater.co.uk  this is to avoid an estimated bill which may show a higher consumption than you have used.  Taking a read when the site has been closed allows you to see the measured water that has flowed through the meter and identify whether you have leakage or devices using water whilst you are closed.

Once you’ve reopened, send regular meter reads to meterreadings@sesbusinesswater.co.uk this will help you receive accurate consumption bills.  If your consumption has reduced this will help you receive lower bills.  If you do not provide meter reads, your bills will be estimated on pre Covid-19 consumption levels.

The first bill following reopening may include a credit for the few days of charges at the end of March. Covering the period from Temporarily Closed (typically 24th March) for the charges already billed to the end of March.

Follow good Water Hygiene advice before reopening sites.

Regulation and behaviour changes (England and Severn Trent part of Wales)

We have changed our working practices during the National Emergency to comply with the Customer Protection Code of Practice.

We understand that during the COVID-19 Pandemic that “Covid-19 Affected Customers” may not be able to continue their businesses as normal, we will therefore stop the following for bills produced during the period 1st March 2020 to 30th June 2020:

• Serving disconnection notices for non-payment of bills/invoice.
• Recover late payment fees associated with bills/invoices.
• The above is for a limited period and where you are able to make payments you should continue to do so.

In conclusion:

1. Watch this page for updates
2. Keep in touch and let us know whether your sites are open or closed directly due to the Pandemic.
3. Provide meter reads where safe to do so

Thank you from the team at SES Business Water.  We remain dedicated to serving our customers as well as providing practical advice and best practice during the Pandemic.