Water prices up by less than inflation again

Wednesday 22 January 2014

Water rates will go up by just 1% in April.

The price rise announced this morning by Jersey Water will make 2014 the 12th consecutive year in which prices remain at or below the rate of inflation. The company has also announced that close to three-quarters of all Island homes are now connected to water meters and are paying in line with water use.

They say that most customers see their costs go down once they are on meters.

Jersey Water finance director Helier Smith announced the price rise that will take effect from 1 April.

He said: “At Jersey Water we work hard to keep price increases as low as possible. We are continually looking at ways to operate more efficiently in an environment where there is continuous upward pressure on costs.

“We have been very successful with this policy. Over the past decade, the price of metered water has fallen by 16% after taking inflation into account.

“The Company made great progress on its Universal Metering programme. During 2013, we installed over 3,700 new meters bringing the proportion of metered connections to approximately 74%. We are very pleased with the project which is on track and on budget.

“Customers are seeing the benefit too, approximately 60% of customers are seeing a saving when switching to meter and the significant majority of our customers are now in control of their water bills and only pay for the water they use. Customers that have not yet been switched to meter can still apply to get one installed ahead of the installation programme by contacting our Customer Services Department on 707301.”