Water Utility collecting PPS Numbers

When claiming the Children's water allowance it is up to you to contact Irish Water when they are 18 to have them taken off the allowance. Their system doesn't take them off automatically.
 
DSP are no more going to give them DOB details than any other personal data they hold - Data Protection...

Actually IW do have the power under the relevant legislation to obtain such information as it may reasonably require in order to discharge its functions from various bodies (including DSP).
 
What makes you think that?

I spoke to a manager in Irish Water today regarding their use of Children's PPS numbers and I found out that when your child reaches 18 'It is incumbent on the person who has made the declaration on behalf of that child to contact us and declare it'. They will NOT automatically delete the information. All they want to know from the child's PPS number is (a) it is a valid PPS number (b) it has not been duplicated to claim allowances at another address and (c) that the PPS number for the child is related back to the postal address where the child benefit is paid out. Their system does not pick up that a child has reached 18 just like it doesn't pick up a person moving from one address to another.

The manager was adamant, telling me in the declaration it is clearly stated that it is my responsibility to contact them if there is any change of information provided in the form. I asked if they intend sending out an application form each year and I was told 'no'. I asked what if I only discovered this in 5 years time? The reply 'I suppose you'd owe us for water you shouldn't have been claiming for.'

Surely they can check DOB's with the DSP on any child PPSNs supplied?

'When I contacted the Department of Social Protection their reply to me was '..this department will be verifying data provided to us by Irish Water'. Apparently it is up to Irish Water to apply. Irish Water has said they never said they would be checking the date of birth of a child.
 
Now's the time to reach out for the PPS number of deceased relatives.

What a totally and unnecessarily complicated system. No wonder the start up costs are in millions.
 
Extract from a report in today's Irish Times (29 September 2014):

"Irish Water has said landlords will not be held liable for arrears of water charges built up by their tenants.

The utility firm said landlords will be sent application packs in relation to their rental properties, which they must forward to the tenants.
In the case of an owner occupier, the full allowances in relation to water usage are allocated in the normal way and the occupier is liable for the bill.

A spokeswoman explained that if the property was unoccupied the landlord could claim unoccupied dwelling status and pay a set charge. The level of which is still under consideration by the regulator. In this case the landlord is liable for the charge.

However in the case of a rented property, Irish Water said, “The tenant is liable for the charge and is also eligible for the allowances as the property is the principal primary residence of that household.”

However the spokeswoman said application packs for rented dwellings would be addressed to the landlord, at the landlord’s residence, and it would be the landlord’s responsibility to ensure the tenant received the application pack."
 
Assuming the accuracy of the Irish Times article, it appears that Irish Water have changed their position that a landlord/owner would be liable for water charges relating to a particular property unless the tenant/occupier of that property assumed liability for those charges by completing and returning an application form. That position, in my opinion, was not supported by the relevant legislation and therefore this apparent change of approach is to be welcomed.

However, the legislative basis for imposing a responsibility on landlords to ensure that their tenants have received an application pack is unclear to me. Furthermore, what are the consequence where a landlord fails to discharge this "responsibility", for whatever reason?

Perhaps this will all become clear in the coming days but the approach of Irish Water to date on this issue does not fill me with confidence.
 
Can you fill in the form with the PPS and delete the references that say "you are a customer of Irish Water" and sign it?

This "customer of Irish Water" is used 3 times, B(4), B(5) and (D) Declaration.

I was never a "customer of the Local Authority" and for example, in places like Meath water charges always existed.
 
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