Every five years, we submit a Pricing Submission to the Essential Services Commission.
We have committed to ensuring that the fees customers pay us are contributing to services offerings and service levels that are valued. In consultation with our customers, we made 6 customer broad Outcome commitments in our 2018 Price Submission:
- Outcome 1 – Services to my home and business are safe, reliable and efficiently managed
- Outcome 2 – Customer service is accessible and my enquiries are resolved promptly
- Outcome 3 – Billing and payment options are efficient and convenient
- Outcome 4 – Customers in hardship are supported
- Outcome 5 – The whole of the water cycle is managed in an environmentally sustainable way
- Outcome 6 – Greater Western Water is a valued partner in servicing a growing Melbourne
We track our progress against these Outcome commitments through a range of key performance measures. We asses our performance against target for each key performance measures to determine how we are tracking on balance for each of our Outcome commitments. Our 2018-19 financial year results and areas for improvement are set out as follows:
More detailed reporting is as follows:
Outcome 1: Services to my home and business are safe, reliable and efficiently managed
We are working hard to make sure we achieve key performance indicators for 2019-20. We met 11 of our 15 key performance indicators under this Outcome for 2018-19. A key standout for our performance in 2018-19 was our sewerage service performance measures that are all in-line with customer expectations and the commitments we made.
We are working to improve water supply performance measures over the coming year after dry soil conditions triggered a high number of repeated interruptions for a small number of customers in 2018-19. Those customers received payments under our Guaranteed Service Level Scheme. In 2018-19, we also received a higher than expected number of complaints with respect to water sourced from Greenvale Reservoir in late summer. We are working with our bulk supplier to minimise future impacts on our customers.
Our 2018-19 results for Outcome 1 are:
| Indicator |
Unit |
Target |
Actual |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Drinking Water Quality – Customer satisfaction score on water quality via GWW Customer Satisfaction Surveys (score of 7 out of 10 or higher) |
Percentage |
91.0% |
91.5% |
|
Drinking Water Quality – Number of water quality complaints per 1000 customers |
Count/ thousand customers |
0.70 |
1.17 |
|
Number of Safe Drinking Water Act non-compliances (water sampling and audit) |
Number |
0 |
0 |
|
Water and recycled water service reliability – Unplanned water supply interruptions restored within 5 hours |
Percentage |
97.0% |
97.8% |
|
Water and recycled water service reliability – Average time taken (from notification) to restore unplanned water supply interruption |
Minutes |
120.0 |
113.3 |
|
Water and recycled water service reliability - Planned water supply interruptions restored within 5 hours |
Percentage |
99.0% |
98.8% |
|
Water and recycled water service reliability – Customers experiencing more than five (i.e. 6+) unplanned water service interruptions in a year |
Count |
0 |
9 |
|
Water and recycled water service reliability – Customers experiencing more than three (i.e. 4+) unplanned water service interruptions in a year |
Count |
126 |
206 |
|
Water and recycled water service reliability – Number of low supply pressure events |
Count |
0 |
0 |
|
Sewerage service reliability – Customers experiencing more than three (i.e. 4+) unplanned sewerage service interruptions in a year |
Count |
10 |
0 |
|
Sewerage service reliability – Interruptions to sewerage services restored within 5 hours |
Percentage |
98.0% |
99.7% |
|
Sewerage service reliability – Average time (from notification) to rectify blockage/spill (main and HCB) |
Minutes |
124 |
123 |
|
Sewerage service reliability – Sewer spills contained within 5 hours of notification |
Percentage |
100.0% |
100.0% |
|
Sewerage service reliability – Sewer spills within a house, that are a result of a failure in our pipes |
Count |
13 |
8 |
|
Sewerage service reliability – Sewer spills within a house, that are a result of a failure in our pipes, not contained within 1 hour of notification |
Percentage |
0 |
0 |
Outcome 2 – Customer service is accessible and my enquiries are resolved promptly
We met four of our seven key performance indicators for this outcome.
While we had a low rate of complaints in 2018-19, we aim to improve customer satisfaction with our response to complaints – particularly for non-residential customers. Customer satisfaction with our response to enquiries was within target ranges. While we maintained full compliance with our code requirement to respond to enquiries within 10 business days, we are aiming to increase correspondence we respond to within one business day.
In 2018-19, it took us longer than anticipated to implement process workflows and process automation required to achieve this target.
Our 2018-19 results for Outcome 2 are:
| Indicator |
Unit |
Target |
Actual |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Calls resolved on first contact |
Percentage |
75.0% |
97.2% |
|
Customer correspondence (emails) responded to within one business day |
Percentage |
95.0% |
79.3% |
|
Customer correspondence (emails and mail) responded to within 10 business days |
Percentage |
100.0% |
100.0% |
|
Residential customer satisfaction with response to an enquiry via GWW survey (score of 7 out of 10 or higher) |
Percentage |
85.0% |
84.0% |
|
Non-residential customer satisfaction with response to an enquiry via GWW survey (score of 7 out of 10 or higher) |
Percentage |
85.0% |
89.0% |
|
Residential customer satisfaction with response to complaint via GWW survey (score of 7 out of 10 or higher) |
Percentage |
50.0% |
36.0% |
|
Non-residential customer satisfaction with response to a complaint via GWW survey (score of 7 out of 10 or higher) |
Percentage |
50.0% |
67.0% |
|
Complaints investigated by the Energy and Water Ombudsman of Victoria |
Count/ thousand customers |
0.10 |
0.05 |
Outcome 3 – Billing and payment options are efficient and convenient
We met both of our key performance indicators for this outcome.
For 2019-20 we will start reporting on a new indicator on customers registered with online accounts. We continue to progress our projects to provide online accounts to customers in the 2019-20 financial year.
Our 2018-19 results for Outcome 3 are:
| Indicator |
Unit |
Target |
Actual |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Payment issue complaints |
Count/ thousand customers |
1.20 |
0.97 |
|
Estimated meter reads used for billing (of total reads) |
Percentage |
≤3% |
2.1% |
|
Customers with registered online accounts (of all accounts) |
Percentage |
0.00% |
N/A |
Outcome 4 – Customers in hardship are supported
We recognise the essential nature of the services and the importance of providing options and assistance to those of customers who our financially vulnerable or are in financial hardship. We have seen good results on these measures we use as indicators of our progress against this outcome commitment.
Our 2018-19 results for Outcome 4 are:
| Indicator |
Unit |
Target |
Actual |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Anticipated customers on instalment plans at the end of reporting period |
Count/ thousand customers |
138 |
137 |
|
Anticipated residential customers receiving hardship grants |
Count/ thousand customers |
1.2 |
1.4 |
|
Customers taking up Water Assist to improve their water efficiency |
Count |
200 |
208 |
|
Prior to restriction being applied, GWW has undertaken reasonable endeavours to ensure customer is not in hardship |
Percentage |
100.0% |
100.0% |
Outcome 5 – The whole of the water cycle is managed in an environmentally sustainable way
We have a balanced work program that aims to manage the resources we control in sustainable manner.
This includes local measures such, stormwater harvesting and water education as well as central system interventions such as ordering water from the Victorian Desalination Project. We manage the wastewater system to avoid spills and to recycle effluent for productive uses in line with our customers’ expectations. We met all of our performance measure targets supporting this outcome area during 2018-19.
Our 2018-19 results for Outcome 5 are:
| Indicator |
Unit |
Target |
Actual |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Future water resources – Water lost from the network (of total water supplied) |
Percentage |
9.3% |
8.3% |
|
Future water resources – Water storage levels remain (in November) as per the water outlook zones in our Urban Water Strategy |
Percentage |
≥40% |
62.9% |
|
Safe treatment & disposal of sewage – Emergency relief structures compliant with requirement to not spill in dry weather |
Percentage |
100.0% |
100.0% |
|
Safe treatment & disposal of sewage – Compliance with the Environmental Protection Authority's discharge licence requirements - Number of licence non-compliances |
Count |
0.0% |
0.0% |
|
Climate change – Net-zero emissions by 2030: Greenhouse gas reductions (from 12,401 tonnes CO2e) |
Percentage |
0.0% |
NA |
|
Liveability – Stormwater partnerships in place |
Count |
7.00 |
7.00 |
Outcome 6 – Greater Western Water is a valued partner in servicing a growing Melbourne
In 2018-19, we saw high rates of urban development and construction activity across our service area. This resulted in higher than anticipated numbers of land development applications, plumbing applications and property connection applications. We met two of our five key performance indicators for this outcome. Overall, we believe we need to work harder to achieve this outcome in 2019-20.
Coupled with this increased urban development applications, it took us longer than anticipated to implement process workflows and automations required to achieve this new set of targets. We continue to work towards faster application turnaround times and anticipate that we will achieve 2019-20 targets.
Our 2018-19 results for Outcome 6 are:
| Indicator |
Unit |
Target |
Actual |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Standard plumbing applications completed on time (within 10 business days, from 2020-21 five business days) |
Percentage |
≥95% |
73.4% |
|
Pressure and flow information applications processed on time (within 10 business days, from 2020-21 five business days) |
Percentage |
≥95% |
98.6% |
|
Asset information applications processed on time (within 10 business days, from 2020-21 two business days) |
Percentage |
≥95% |
90.6% |
|
Standard new customer contribution applications processed within 45 business days |
Percentage |
≥95% |
79.9% |
|
Standard 20mm new meter supply and assembly installed within 10 business days of GWW consent |
Percentage |
≥95% |
95.9% |
