DECLARATION OF CUSTOMER SERVICES

Transcription

1 DECLARATION OF CUSTOMER SERVICES as approved by the SWDE Board of Directors at its meeting on

2 OUR VISION, OUR MISSIONS AND OUR VALUES OUR VISION The Société wallonne des eaux (SWDE) is the biggest drinking water producer and distributor in Wallonia. As the leading regional organisation, SWDE wishes to help public authorities to meet the challenges associated with a changing water sector. So SWDE has the following aims: N to maintain an acceptable price for water in spite of reduced consumption N to renew infrastructures. This vision takes the practical form of: N 7 strategic programmes N reducing operational costs by 20 cents per m³ of distributed water by 2022 N increasing annual investments to 100 million. OUR MISSIONS 1 To produce drinking water 2 To distribute drinking water 3 To design suitable infrastructures for producing and distributing water 4 To anticipate and respond to the customer s needs. The ways in which SWDE carries out these activities fully comply with: N the Water Code stipulated by the Walloon Parliament, N the Management Contract concluded with the Walloon Government. SWDE is firmly convinced that water services must be guaranteed, now and in the future, both here and elsewhere, by effective public organisations. Its ambition: To guarantee and reinforce public management of the water cycle. 2 SWDE S DECLARATION OF CUSTOMER SERVICES

3 OUR VALUES Achieving our aims also depends on a set of values which are accepted and shared by both management and staff: R for Responsibility Developing a sense of responsibility in each of the members of staff is a key objective of our policy. E for Environment Sustainable development is a priority. Preserving a natural resource such as water and reducing our environmental impact are central to our concerns. S for Satisfaction for our customers We want to make a point of listening to our customers and providing them with a top quality service at all times, at a reasonable cost. P for Performance We want to establish ourselves as an example of a strong public company, capable of responding to the technical and financial challenges of the water sector. E for Esprit d équipe (Team spirit) We want to unite around the aims stated in our business plan, encouraging each other to share experiences and good practices. C for Creativity We want to stimulate project management, developing creativity and making the most of skills within the company. T for Transparency We want to encourage open and productive communication and dialogue. SWDE S DECLARATION OF CUSTOMER SERVICES 3

4 OUR UNDERTAKINGS The quality of the water supplied to you is one of our absolute priorities. 1 To produce and distribute water whose quality is constantly monitored 2 Ensuring continuity of supply in terms of flow rate and pressure SWDE has always adopted a prevention policy by carrying out a number of inspection analyses far in excess of the legal requirements. These enable us to check the quality of your water on a regular basis, and also to act promptly and proactively when we note any deterioration in water quality. We do everything possible to guarantee static pressure at the meter of between 2 and 10 bars, as well as a minimum flow rate of 300 litres an hour right across our distribution network, under normal operating conditions. The results of the analyses from these checks can be seen on our website. They are updated regularly. You can also obtain them on request. The admissible lead content of water, set by the European Union, is 10 micrograms per litre. To meet these requirements, SWDE is replacing all the lead pipelines still in use on the network. Because your health is also our priority! 4 SWDE S DECLARATION OF CUSTOMER SERVICES

5 3 Informing you in advance if the service is to be interrupted We make every effort to limit the inconvenience inherent in the work we carry out. N When scheduled work is likely to disrupt your water supply, we inform you at least 72 hours before the work begins. We pay very particular attention to our vulnerable customers: patients on dialysis, hospitals, crèches, schools, rest homes, etc. As far as possible, we will ensure that the period of time during which the water supply is cut off because of maintenance work on the distribution network is limited to 4 hours. N Accidents beyond our control may occur on our networks, such as a pipeline being damaged by construction equipment. In these exceptional circumstances, we may have to cut off the supply immediately without providing notice so that our services can take action more easily. If we are unable to inform you using immediate means of communication (vehicle fitted with a loudspeaker, doorto-door, leaflet), our local teams on site and our customer services will provide you with the information you request. If the water is cut off for more than eight hours, we provide a temporary back-up drinking water service so that you can obtain the supplies you need: installing a water tank in a place which is easy to access, establishing temporary connections, distributing cartons, etc. We do our utmost to make sure that drinking water is always available. All the information about your supply conditions may be consulted on our website with regard to: N disruption in your area N construction works in your neighbourhood N water quality parameters. SWDE S DECLARATION OF CUSTOMER SERVICES 5

6 A duty service is organised at SWDE 5 Giving priority to dealing with on-line requests You can use various methods to contact us: The most practical way of contacting SWDE is your Customer space on our website Here you can carry out most operations yourself, on-line, at a time that suits you. You can: N encode your meter statement N see the history of your water consumption N set up direct debits for your invoices N see your invoices and manage your payments (via Zoomit for example) N change the frequency of your intermediate bills, and so on 4 Prompt interventions in emergencies Our technical teams are available around the clock, seven days a week and 365 days a year. Outside office hours, at weekends and on public holidays, they intervene in accordance with the seriousness and urgency of the problem. If you experience a technical emergency our contact numbers are provided at the end of this document. Alongside the services available via the customer Space, the other sections on our website allow you to access the following information or services: N clear and accurate information about your supply conditions (water quality, flow rate, pressure, on-going constructions, etc.) N explanations about the sections of your water bill and the way this information is applied N information and advice (water quality, frost protection, monitoring consumption, private internal installation upstream of the meter, etc.) 6 SWDE S DECLARATION OF CUSTOMER SERVICES

7 N a simulator which allows you to estimate the volume of your annual water consumption N on-line forms allowing you to: e rderons toute l attention e notify SWDE that you are moving to a building it supplies e ask for an analysis of water, whether underground (spring or well, for example) from a swimming pool or surface water (such as a pond or river) e request plans of the water network before carrying out any work. By means of a chat on our website. Our advisers are available to speak to you directly from Monday to Friday, between 8.00 am and pm. If this is not possible, please complete the on-line contact form (see below). By internet. If you haven t been able to find what you re looking for on our website, complete the on-line contact form which you will find under the section Contact\ our website. Don t forget to add your address. We will deal with your request promptly and respond as soon as we can. 6 Be contactable by telephone, especially if there is a technical emergency Our customer services can be contacted by telephone between Monday and Friday from 8.00 am to pm if you have any customer questions and around the clock for technical emergencies: water quality, lack of water, lack of pressure, leak or seepage of water which mean our services need to intervene promptly, etc. The contact numbers are shown at the end of this document. If you want to contact us in writing, please send your letters to the address indicated at the end of this document. You will receive a reply to your query as soon as possible, and within 10 days at the latest. SWDE S DECLARATION OF CUSTOMER SERVICES 7

8 7 Producing a clear and comprehensible bill To gain a better understanding of the rates structure applied to produce your water bill, you can consult our website. A detailed explanation of the various items making up your bill can be found there under the heading Information & advice/ your bill under the magnifying glass. We also use the water bill as a means of providing information. In this way we can keep you informed of the new services available or even the most recent modifications to rates or regulations. We can also give you lots of technical advice, describe our range of services or pass on prevention messages. 8 Providing new connections within 40 days* You can submit your request for a new connection to the public water distribution network by completing the on-line form available on our website (heading on-line Services\new connection). One of our quantity surveyors will have to come and see you about a new connection. An appointment is made on site within ten days of your request (or at a later date at your convenience). We give you an estimate, together with a sketch and technical instructions. Subject to the weather or restrictions relating to the road beyond our control, or if there is some delay in preparatory work to be carried out by you, the connection can be established and brought into service within 30 days of receiving your acceptance of the estimate (or at a later date at your convenience). (*) excluding network extensions and excluding new industrial connections 8 SWDE S DECLARATION OF CUSTOMER SERVICES

9 9 Quickly restoring areas to their original condition after our works and/or our interventions We make sure that our earthworks and construction sites are correctly indicated, both for your safety and for that of the intervention teams and road users. Provided the weather conditions are favourable (for instance, tarmac is not laid when the outside temperature is below 5 C), we make sure that the area is returned to its original condition within a maximum of eight working days. q Permanently evaluating the satisfaction of our customers Every year, we evaluate customer satisfaction using a survey, conducted by an external company, on a representative sample. The questionnaire covers a different topic each year. The results of this survey are published on our website. We use them to establish and monitor ways in which we can improve our service. SWDE S DECLARATION OF CUSTOMER SERVICES 9

10 HOW CAN YOU CONTACT US? On our website via the on-line contact form (Contact > by ) By By post Société wallonne des eaux (SWDE) BP 515 B-1400 Nivelles BELGIUM By telephone, during office hours, from Monday to Friday between 8 h and 17 h on +32 (0) for our French-speaking customers +32 (0) for our German-speaking customers +32 (0) for our Dutch-speaking customers An answerphone is accessible around the clock for any urgent technical problem (water quality, lack of water, lack of pressure, leak or seepage of water requiring a rapid intervention by our services, etc.). If you would like to arrange a meeting with one of our colleagues on one of our sites (Mons, Charleroi, Namur or Liège), please request this via telephone. For customers who have made appointments only payments via Bancontact are accepted on our sites. 10 SWDE S DECLARATION OF CUSTOMER SERVICES

11 AND IF YOU AREN T SATISFIED If you think that the Société wallonne des eaux has failed to fulfil its undertakings or if you are not happy with one of its operational services, please send a claim to our complaints Management Department: Using the on-line contact form on our website: section Contact\by subject of your message Complaint/claim By plaintes@swde.be By post rue de la Concorde, 41 B-4800 Verviers BELGIUM This will be acknowledged within 10 days and you will receive a detailed response within 30 days. If your complaint/claim cannot be dealt with within 30 days, you will be informed about the additional period of time and the reasons for this. If you still feel dissatisfied after our complaints management Department has intervened, you are free to make a subsidiary claim to the Ombudsman of Wallonia and the Fédération Wallonie-Bruxelles: By post rue Lucien Namèche, 54 B-5000 Namur BELGIUM By telephone +32 (0) (Freephone number) By fax +32 (0) By courrier@le-mediateur.be By completing the form on the Ombudsman s internet site ( SWDE S DECLARATION OF CUSTOMER SERVICES 11

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