People who return blank forms will be registered with utility

Members of the public who return blank application forms in protest against water charges will be processed as having registered with the utility, Irish Water has confirmed.

The revelation comes as Wexford man and his carer wife discovered they had registered as Irish Water customers despite having sent their blank application form back in protest.

A statement from Irish Water confirmed the company will bill people “based on the information which they provide” — even if they simply return a blank application form.

“Irish Water has asked people, as part of the application process, to provide details such as contact details, for ease of providing the utility, and PPS numbers, in order that they can avail of their allowances. None of this information is obligatory, and it is entirely at the person’s discretion what information they wish to provide,” the statement read.

“As has previously been outlined, under current conditions, if people do not return an application pack they will be charged the default charge; for those who return an application pack, Irish Water can only bill them based on the information which they provide.

“If people feel they may have omitted information in their application pack they should contact Irish Water who can update their details on our database,” it concluded.

Jim and Julie Nolan this week received a letter from Irish Water confirming their application form had been received and was being processed. Mr Nolan, however, did not fill out the form and only wrote ‘no consent, no contract’ across the document before returning it.

Mr Nolan said he is uncomfortable with supplying Irish Water with his PPS number and called the utility to enquire as to how he had registered as a customer without providing them with any details. He was eventually forwarded to a supervisor.

“I repeatedly asked if he would remove me from Irish Water’s customer database, he refused to do so unless I answered their application form questions over the phone.

“I refused to do this because of the personal details involved, I again and again asked to be removed from the database and pointed out that I had returned the form without details because I did not believe I was an Irish Water customer nor wanted to be one of their customers.

“He informed me once they receive an application form, filled out or not, Irish Water assumes that the person is one of their customers.”

Mr Nolan, who is on an Invalidity Pension, said that he and his wife, who receives a half carer’s allowance, have suffered a cut to their respite grant, their telephone allowance and their ESB allowance in recent years.

“We just can’t afford it,” he said.

Mr Nolan said he had no issue paying his property tax, but said he is being pursued by Revenue for failing to pay the €100 Household Charge.

Meanwhile an Irish Water official met with more than 100 property owners at a five-star hotel in Cork to discuss issues facing landlords arising from the impending water charges.

At a meeting in Hayfield Manor Hotel, Paul O’Donoghue, head of consumer operations at Irish Water, addressed members of the Irish Property Owners Association on a range of the issues including supply, costing, who pays for water under the new system, and spoke about future supplies, how to be compliant, and advised on procedures to be followed in the private rental sector.

“While confusion about the water charges issue continues to dominate the Dáil, Seanad and media, IPOA members are now well informed,” its chairman Stephen Faughnan said.