I thought I would get out the latest account and just try to get my head around this stuff.
The water account is from 25/07/2011 reading 3830 to 28/10/2011 reading 3865
We didn't read the meter for the outgoing tenant as we were overseas and arrived home the day before they left. Reading the meter was low on our list of priorities so all water on this bill that arrived this week is from the outgoing tenant, and we chose not to charge him.
He also was very good in allowing access for appraisal and photos so we are happy to pay for his last water usage.
We read the meter for the ingoing tenant (3861928) and she started the lease on 6 October. Meter reading 28/10/2011 was 3865 so she used 3kL from entry date to the date on this notice, totalling 22 days.
Here is the bit that confuses me...
If I decide to charge her from the first day of her lease, do I work it on 22 days and round (up or down) the meter reading? Say I round it down to 3861 then she has used 3kL and is this what I charge her -
State Bulk Water Charge 3kL $5.36
Tier 1 Consumption 3kL $2.00
Clearly I wouldn't bother charging her $7 but the other way I could do it is to read the meter today (hubby forgot to do it today - but we could read it tomorrow) and I could charge her from 6 October to now, but we haven't actually been billed for that period.
So, I'm assuming I wait until the next account and she is liable for all water used on that bill. This is what I mean by taking each case as it comes, depending on dates.
We've only been able to charge usage for a year or two and I only have a couple of IPs to worry about. My brother looks after the houses for our father and he's explained this to me, but it does my head in.
So, assuming I am right in that the current bill (being nearly three months behind and which is a bill for water before she was even living there - except for 22 days) should be paid by the outgoing tenant (and we chose not to charge him).
The new tenant really doesn't get charged until the account reflects the time she was living there. If we read her meter today and charge her water usage from her start date until now, we are actually asking for money that we haven't been charged for by Urban Utilities.
This is why I don't bother with the first account. It really is confusing to me.