We’re one of Australia’s largest water utilities, providing water and sewerage services to over 2 million people and over 60,000 businesses in Melbourne’s northern and eastern suburbs. Our purpose is to support the health and wellbeing of our customers and create a brighter future for communities and the natural environment.

Established in January 1995, we maintain and operate over 21,000 kilometres of water, recycled water and sewer mains, 44 water supply tanks and 9 sewage treatment plants. We buy our water from Melbourne Water, which also operates the major sewage treatment works that service Melbourne.

We’re committed to providing you with the highest quality water and sewerage services as well as offering responsive customer support. We’re also dedicated to ensuring our services are delivered in ways that have minimal effect on the environment.

We’ve produced this Business Charter Summary specifically for business customers.

As a valued customer, your satisfaction with our services is important to us. This charter summary outlines your rights and our obligations based on the Water Industry Standard issued by the Essential Services Commission (ESC).

The ESC is the economic regulator of the Victorian water industry and their responsibility is to protect the interests of water and sewerage customers.

This charter also incorporates feedback from customers about what matters most to them when it comes to their water and sewerage services. We engaged extensively with customers as part of our 5-year planning process for 2023-28 – every 5 years we’re required to propose the prices we’ll charge and the service standards we’ll provide customers, to the ESC for their review.

This has helped us identify what customers want and value the most. This led to the creation of 6 service outcomes based on the services we provide to customers now and the action we need to take now for the future.

Customers expect:

• Water that’s safe to drink.
• Water and sewerage services they can rely on.
• Fast response and effective restoration of their service when it’s interrupted.
• A service that is accessible and adaptable to meet their needs.
• Saving water now so it’s available in the future.
• Looking after the natural environment.

Overarching these outcomes is a new commitment to embed a caring for Country philosophy across all our decisions and outcomes.

We’re committed to achieving these outcomes and if an outcome isn’t achieved, we’ll return $1.8 million the following year through a community rebate for each outcome not achieved.

We can only change the customer charter after consulting with customers and receiving the Essential Services Commission’s approval. A copy of our entire customer charter is available at yvw.com.au/charters or by contacting us at [email protected] or on 1300 304 688.

As a business customer you can expect:

• A drinking water supply that meets regulatory health requirements established by the Department of Health and is safe, clear and free from objectionable tastes and odours.
• A water flow rate that meets minimum service standards as set out below:

• A flow rate of at least 2 litres per minute at the tap nearest to the water meter if your water supply is restricted. If the restriction will cause a health hazard, call us on 13 27 62.
• Water supply and sewerage services that aren’t interrupted more than twice a year for either water or sewerage services due to unplanned events.
• One week’s written notice of any planned interruptions to our services (including when they’ll occur and for how long). We’ll liaise with you where possible, to agree to the most convenient timing for that interruption.
• Planned interruptions will take no longer than 5 hours.
• Unplanned interruptions will be restored within 4 hours of being notified.
• That where a burst water main threatens substantial or moderate property or environmental damage, we’ll attend the site as soon as we can after being notified.
• Interruptions to your sewerage service will be assessed and contained within 4 hours of notification. If a sewage spill occurs inside your premises, we’ll assess and contain the spill within one hour.
• Flow rates are determined on a case by case basis for property service pipes greater than 50mm.

As part of your business activities you may generate industrial liquid waste (known as trade waste).

This can contain substances such as chemicals, fats or detergents, or it can be liquid food waste. You can discharge this waste into our sewers only if you have a Trade Waste Agreement with us, or otherwise have our consent. We’ll accept trade waste only where there’s no danger to people, the environment or the sewerage system. In the event of a dispute, you have the right to independent mediation.

For more information about trade waste, visit yvw.com.au/tradewaste, call us on 1300 771 865 or download the Trade Waste Customer Charter at yvw.com.au/charters.

As a business customer, you have rights to water supply for fire testing and fighting. Fire services are installed for fire service testing and can only be used for the purposes of fighting fires.

If your business activity presents a backflow risk to our water supply system, we may require you to fit a suitable backflow prevention device at the outlet of the meter. A backflow prevention device prevents the reverse flow of water from a potentially polluted source into the drinking water supply system.

We’ll also require you to test the backflow prevention device annually and submit the results to us.

We’re committed to delivering high standards of service.

Water supply and sewerage services

We’re responsible for maintaining:

• The property water meter, pipes and fittings from our water main to the water meter on your property.
• The water service to the property boundary if the meter is more than 2 metres inside the property boundary.
• The sewer and its branches up to the property connection point or a maximum of one metre from the sewer main (whichever is shorter).
• Up to the first stop valve or tap inside the property boundary when there’s no meter.

In the case of an owners corporation or central body of a business site, we’re responsible for maintaining:

• The water service up to and including the main property meter which is usually located at the property boundary.
• The water service to the property boundary if the meter is more than 2 metres inside the property boundary.
• Up to the first accessible stop valve from the water main if the meter is located in a structure or building.

You and/or the owners corporation are required to maintain any pipe work on your side of the property water meter, at your cost. We’ll maintain the property meters and individual meters that are installed.

If the property has a private fire service, we’re responsible for maintaining up to the stop valve at the main. Property owners are responsible for the private fire service.

Private water mains

We’re not responsible for maintaining any shared or single service private water mains, also known as trunk services. We’ll maintain individual water meters where they’re installed.

Your quarterly account will generally include 2 types of charges. The first are fixed water supply system and sewerage system charges, and the second are volumetric charges relating to water usage and sewage disposal, based on meter readings taken 4 times a year.

If you use high volumes of water you may be billed monthly for services and usage charges.

We collect trade waste charges from customers who have an agreement with us and fire service charges where applicable.

We also collect charges on behalf of Parks Victoria for parks services and Melbourne Water for waterways and drainage from customers who own a property within Melbourne Water’s Waterways Management District.

For an owners corporation or central body of a business site, we’ll bill you for usage charges relating to common land and facilities, e.g. a common grounds sprinkler system. We may also bill you for usage charges for businesses forming part of your site that don’t have their own water meters.

As per the Water Act 1989, owners of commercial properties are financially responsible for all water and sewerage charges incurred at the property. Commercial property owners can recover all usage, water and sewerage system charges from renters and will need to have an agreement with renters for paying these charges.

Any renter responsibilities or payment arrangements contained within a commercial lease agreement are a private agreement between the parties. If you have any queries please contact us at [email protected] or 1300 304 688.

If we inadvertently overcharge you, we’ll either give you a credit on your next bill or offer you a refund.

If we undercharge you, we’ll discuss any necessary adjustments and tailor a repayment plan to suit.

If you’re having trouble paying your account, we can support you with a flexible payment arrangement to suit your business. Call us on 1300 304 688 for more information.

A rebate on water and sewerage charges and fire service charges is available for not-for-profit organisations throughout Victoria, which serve their community in the fields of:

• Education
• Hospitals or nursing care
• Religious worship
• Charitable organisations
• Outdoor sporting or recreation activities
• War veterans’ organisations.

To apply for a rebate, please contact our Customer Care Team at yvw.com.au/enquiry, [email protected] or 1300 304 688. All applications are submitted to the State Revenue Office for approval.

You must pay your account by the due date on your bill. Payment methods include:

• Direct debit
• Electronic Funds Transfer (EFT)
• BPAY
• Credit card – online at yvw.com.au/pay, via your online account at yvw.com.au/online or by phone on 1300 362 332.
• In person at any post office, phone 13 1816 or go to postbillpay.com.au.

For the latest payment methods, please refer to your account, visit yvw.com.au/pay or call 1300 304 688.

We’re committed to providing excellent customer service. If you have a complaint, please contact our Customer Care Team at [email protected] or on 1300 304 688. You can also write to us at Yarra Valley Water, 25-35 Lucknow Street, Mitcham VIC 3132.

We’ll respond promptly to your complaint and do our best to resolve the problem to your satisfaction. Our reply will give the reasons for our decision.

If you aren’t satisfied with the reply, you can have the complaint reassessed. You also have the right to seek external resolution of a problem that can’t be satisfactorily resolved by other means. You can contact the Energy and Water Ombudsman Victoria on 1800 500 509, at ewov.com.au or by mail to Reply Paid 469, Melbourne VIC 8060.

For information on our complaints and disputes handling process, please visit yvw.com.au/feedback.

We recognise that your privacy is of great importance and we’re committed to protecting your personal information. We collect personal and water use information for the purpose of providing water and sewerage related services. We must keep your personal and water use information confidential and comply with binding privacy laws such as the Information Privacy Principles contained in the Privacy and Data Protection Act 2014.

To view our Privacy Policy, visit yvw.com.au/privacy.

Enquiries

1300 304 688

Faults & emergencies

13 27 62 (24 hours a day, 7 days a week)

Free translating & interpreting service

Arabic العربية

1300 914 361
http://www.yvw.com.au/online/Arabic 

Cantonese 廣東話

1300 921 362
http://www.yvw.com.au/online/cantonese 

Greek Eλληνικά

1300 931 364
http://www.yvw.com.au/online/greek 

Mandarin 普通话

1300 927 363
http://www.yvw.com.au/online/mandarin 

Other languages

For all other languages please call 03 9046 4173 (local call cost in Australia) 8:30 am - 5 pm, Monday to Friday.

Email [email protected]

25-35 Lucknow Street Mitcham VIC 3132
ABN 93 066 902 501
yvw.com.au