Auckland (The NZ Today)
Watercare has apologised after a billing system error caused $6.14 million to be taken early from nearly 44,000 Auckland customer accounts, in some cases up to 18 days before payments were due.
The problem occurred on Monday during an upgrade to Watercare’s billing system and affected both direct debit and credit card customers.
Watercare chief financial officer Angela Neeson said 43,835 accounts were caught up in the error.
Affected customers were contacted the same day and told their payment had already been applied to their bill and would not be taken again on the original due date.
Watercare has offered refunds to anyone facing financial difficulty because of the unexpected deduction.
The organisation says requested refunds are being processed immediately, with money expected back either the same day or by the next working day.
However, customers who choose to reverse the early payment will then need to manually pay their bill when its original due date arrives.
Watercare said manual controls have now been introduced to stop any further payments being processed ahead of schedule while it works with its system provider on the problem.
Consumer NZ has criticised the scale of the error, saying tens of thousands of people unexpectedly losing money from their accounts could create serious problems for households operating on tight budgets.
Campaigns manager Jessica Walker told the NZ Herald, which reported the issue, that Consumer NZ believed Watercare had failed to provide its service with reasonable care and skill.
The watchdog said customers who were charged bank fees or faced other additional costs because of the mistake may also have grounds to seek reimbursement from Watercare.
Consumer NZ also wants Watercare to show flexibility if customers who receive a refund later miss or delay their manual payment.
Auckland Mayor Wayne Brown told the Herald he was disappointed to learn about the error, saying Aucklanders were entitled to expect better, although he acknowledged Watercare had moved quickly to respond.
Watercare has again apologised to affected customers and is urging anyone placed under financial pressure by the premature deduction to contact the organisation.
Source: NZ Herald; Watercare; Consumer NZ.
