Decision Report 201305252

Summary

Mr C complained that Business Stream failed to properly invoice his company for outstanding water charges, unreasonably disconnected the water supply and failed to respond reasonably to his contacts with them.

When we investigated this, we found that Business Stream had written to his company in February 2013 introducing themselves as the water supplier and asking him to contact them. In August they began sending him invoices, reminders and final notices, and at the end of January 2014, they sent a disconnection warning letter. About two weeks later, Mr C made his first contact with them by completing an online form, saying he was very unhappy with the charges and had contacted the SPSO. An officer from Business Stream tried to contact Mr C about his concerns but received no response and closed the case. Business Stream disconnected the supply in early March.

Having reviewed all the evidence, we were satisfied that Business Stream properly invoiced Mr C for his company's water charges, and noted how many times they contacted him about these. However, with the exception of the online form, and a single phone call, Mr C did not attempt to resolve this with them or complain until after they disconnected his supply. We reviewed the disconnection process and found that it was in line with the code of conduct laid down by the Water Industry Commission for Scotland. As we found no evidence to suggest that Business Stream had not complied with their responsibilities, we did not uphold Mr C's complaints.