Water Act 2014

18 Charges for providing a water main etc

(1) The Water Industry Act 1991 is amended as follows.

(2) In section 42 (financial conditions for compliance with the duty in section 41 to provide a water main)—

(a) in subsection (1)(b) (condition as to providing security), for the words from “such security” to “reasonably required” there is substituted “such security as charging rules allow and the undertaker may have required”;

(b) in subsection (2) (undertaking to pay), for paragraph (a) there is substituted—

“(a) bind the person or persons mentioned in that subsection to pay to the undertaker such charges as the undertaker may impose in accordance with charging rules, and”;

(c) subsections (4) and (5) (interest on sums deposited by way of security) are repealed;

(d) in subsection (6) (reference of disputes to Water Services Regulation Authority), in paragraph (b), after “the amount” there is inserted “or amounts by way of charges”.

(3) In section 45 (duty to make domestic connections to a water main)—

(a) in subsection (2) (the nature of the duty), the words “, at the expense of the person serving the notice,” are repealed;

(b) for subsection (6) there is substituted—

“(6) Where a water undertaker carries out any works which it is its duty under this section to carry out, the person serving the notice is liable to pay to the undertaker such charges as the undertaker may impose in accordance with charging rules.”;

(c) in subsection (6A) (reference of disputes to Authority), for “as to whether the expenses were incurred reasonably” there is substituted “as to the payments required to be made”.

(4) In section 46 (duty to carry out ancillary works for the purpose of making a domestic connection under section 45)—

(a) in subsection (1) (the nature of the duty), the words “, at the expense of the person serving the notice,” are repealed;

(b) in subsection (7), in paragraph (b), for “under this section at another person’s expense” there is substituted “as its duty under this section”;

(c) in subsection (7), in the words after paragraph (b), for “under that section at another person’s expense” there is substituted “as its duty under that section”;

(d) in subsection (9) (consequences of exercising power under section 46(8) to lay a water main rather than a service pipe), paragraph (b) (maximum expenses recoverable) and the “but” preceding it are repealed.

(5) In section 47 (conditions of connection with water main)—

(a) in subsection (2)(a) (requirement to give security for amounts to be paid), for the words from “such security” to “reasonably require” there is substituted “such security as charging rules allow and the undertaker requires”;

(b) in subsection (3B) (reference of disputes to Authority), in the opening words, “whether” is repealed;

(c) in subsection (3B), for paragraph (a) there is substituted—

“(a) the security required to be provided by a condition imposed under subsection (2)(a),”;

(d) in subsection (3B)(b), at the beginning there is inserted “whether”;

(e) in subsection (3B)(c), after “particular case,” there is inserted “whether”.