Tenant billing

If you’re renting and unsure about how your billing works or how to make payments, here are a few tips to help you understand your options.

Tenant responsibilities

In most cases, as a residential tenant, you will pay for the water you use, and the property owner will pay for the water service charges for the property. However, this will depend on your rental agreement.

Business tenants may be responsible for paying the total water account - service and water use charges. Check the lease agreement with your property owner or managing agent.

For more information on tenant payment responsibilities, please visit Commerce WA.

Tenant billing

If you want to get your water bills sent to you, you will need permission from the property manager or owner. To set up tenant billing, your property manager or owner can update the personal details form and select the relevant option.

With tenant billing, you can also create an online account, pay your bills online and keep track your water use.

If you’re making water use payments to your property manager or owner, the bill is being sent to them to forward the water use charges to you. Please speak to them if you would like to change to tenant billing.

With tenant billing, you can

• Register for an online account with the ERN number provided on your bill
• Receive copies of water use bills directly from us
• Discuss the property’s account
• Update your contact details, such as your phone number and email address
• Access payment arrangements and financial hardship options. Please note that it is then our responsibility to communicate to the property manager or owner on your behalf, as their consent is required
• Speak with us about your water use
• Compare your water use with similar households in your area
• Set up direct debit for when your bills are due
• Choose how you receive your bills

Bill frequency

You'll get a bill from us every 2 months if you have tenant billing set up. If you don't receive bills directly from us, your property manager or owner will receive the water use bill every 2 months. This is because we come out to read your water meter every 2 months and bill you for the water you've used for that period.

Some business customers may receive their water use bill more frequently, for example, monthly or fortnightly. This will be determined by the complexity of your operations and the amount of water you use.

Please note: your water bill doesn't show outstanding amounts or credit, so we recommend you keep track of your payments to make sure you are up to date. Always make sure to pay the exact amount owing on each bill so you don’t unknowingly go into credit or overdue status.

Overdue payments

Whether you have tenant billing set up or not, the property manager or owner will receive the overdue notice if your bill becomes overdue.

Need help paying your bill?

We have several options available if you need more time to pay your bill. For more information on how we can help, visit Help with paying your bill.

Shared meters

If the property has a shared meter, we suggest that a calculation showing how your water use costs are worked out is included in your tenancy agreement. You can refer to your agreement to ensure your costs are calculated correctly. Check out our page on shared water meter charges for information on shared meter water use charges.

Property has own meter

You should be paying for the water used as per the meter reading. However, this will depend on your tenant agreement.

Concession on your water use charges

You can apply for a concession rebate on your water use if you hold a pension concession card. The concession will show on your bill if you are granted a concession rebate and have tenant billing set up. If you don’t receive your bills from us, please check with your property manager or owner that the concession is being applied to the water use component of the bill.

Payment options

When you receive your bills from us, there are several ways you can pay, including online via your online account, BPAY or over the phone. For more information, please visit ways to pay your account.

Direct Debit

You can set up a direct debit to ‘Pay bills when due’ with tenant billing. This means the exact amount of your bill is automatically paid on the due date. To set up a direct debit, use the direct debit form and select “I am a tenant.”

If you are a business customer with multiple properties, please log into your online account to make it easier to set up a direct debit for your properties.