Water Charging in Queensland: What Property Owners Need to Know
Charging tenants for water involves more than forwarding an invoice. Queensland property owners need to meet water efficiency requirements, keep supporting records and follow strict billing timeframes.
Understanding these obligations can help protect your rental income and reduce disputes.
When can tenants be charged for water?
For a general tenancy, owners can pass on full water consumption charges when:
- The property is individually metered, or water is delivered by vehicle.
- The property meets water efficiency standards.
- The tenancy agreement states that the tenant must pay for water consumption.
Eligible charges include water usage and state bulk water charges. Fixed water access charges, sewerage access charges and sewerage usage charges remain the owner’s responsibility.
Demonstrating water efficiency
Owners should retain evidence that the property’s relevant taps, showerheads and toilets meet the required standards. Supporting documents can include plumbing reports, receipts, product packaging and instruction manuals. Water efficient fixtures should also be recorded in the entry condition report.
Our agency recommends obtaining a water efficiency compliance certificate from a licensed plumber. This provides a useful record if a tenant questions whether the property is water efficient.
A plumber’s certificate is one way to demonstrate compliance; it is not the only form of evidence accepted under RTA guidance.
As an agency recommendation, owners should consider reviewing compliance annually or between tenancies, particularly where fixtures have been replaced or altered. This is a practical precaution rather than a mandatory annual certification requirement.
Forward water bills promptly
The owner remains responsible for paying the supplier’s bill. The tenant is then invoiced for the eligible consumption charges under the tenancy agreement.
A copy of the supplier’s bill must reach the tenant within four weeks of the owner receiving it. If this deadline is missed, the tenant does not have to pay the relevant water charges.
Please forward your bill to our office as soon as it arrives. Sending it to your agent near the end of the four-week period may leave insufficient time to meet the deadline.
How long does the tenant have to pay?
Tenants have four weeks after receiving the bill to pay. This is separate from the owner’s deadline for providing it.
If payment remains outstanding after that period, our agency will advise you and seek instructions about the next steps.
Water charges at the beginning and end of a tenancy
Water billing periods often overlap tenancy start and finish dates. Partial billing allows charges to reflect the tenant’s period of occupation.
The property must meet the applicable metering and water efficiency requirements. Calculations must use the relevant condition-report meter reading, a reasonable estimate of consumption and the applicable water rate.
Where a tenancy ends before the supplier’s bill is available, RTA guidance allows the final calculation to use the most recent bill’s rate without requiring an unavailable bill. Recording readings in both entry and exit condition reports helps support accurate calculations.
Need assistance?
Our property management team can help you arrange a water efficiency assessment, review supporting records and manage tenant invoicing.
For further information, visit the RTA’s water charging guidance.
