Jaco Hamman discusses the significant High Court judgment involving Johannesburg Water and municipal effluent billing.
Transcript
[00:08][Eon] Joining me here on Legal Talk, as always, is from Hahn & Hahn Attorneys, Jaco Hamman, who recently secured a significant High Court judgment against Joburg Water, Johannesburg Water. Jaco, congratulations and well done.
[00:25][Jaco] Thanks, Eon. Thanks for having me, as always.
[00:28][Eon] Now, let's start simply, Jaco. What was this case actually about?
[00:33][Jaco] Eon, our client, a steel manufacturer, now, like any industrial operator, you know, they use water in their manufacturing plant, and then that water that then gets discharged, we call that effluent. Now, that effluent then, of course, flows into the municipal sewer system, and because that effluent, it's not, of course, clean water, they pay a fee for that, and that fee they pay based on how much they discharge. There's other things in there as well. So, in other words, depending on the quality of the effluent, but let's leave that for now. So, the easiest way to explain it, say, well, you pay based on the volume that you discharge. Now, our client had a proper calibrated meter installed that measured exactly how much effluent was going into the sewer. Now, your listeners can think now at their own home, you've got a meter measuring the water coming into your property. Now, for effluent, you've got another meter measuring how much water goes into the system, because you are charged for that. Now, that meter of theirs is calibrated, they swap it every six months, they take meter readings. Now, the dispute was that Joburg Water sent our client bills and then didn't use those meter readings. Instead, they used the calculation, and that calculation is based on a rough estimate. Now, of course, that rough, that estimate was a lot higher than the actual water consumption.
[02:26][Eon] Okay, and that's not just a technicality. I mean, what was the actual impact on your client, Jaco?
[02:33][Jaco] So, it was substantial. So, over a four-year period, the estimate method produced bills that was roughly three times higher. That's three times higher than what the meters actually recorded. Now, what makes this even sadder is that Johannesburg Water's officials visited the site eight times during that period. They saw the meters, they were there, they saw that it worked. They even themselves took some of those readings, and they never complained to said it's not valid. Yet, they kept on billing the client on estimates anyway.
[03:16][Eon] Sjoh! And what did the court decide?
[03:20][Jaco] So, the court was very clear. They said that the bylaw, if you read the bylaw, it's very clear. It says that estimate method only applies in the absence of any direct measurement. So, where you've got a working meter, the municipality doesn't have a discretion just to disregard it because their estimates is higher. So, they can't use that estimate instead of using the actual meter readings. And the reason for that is the municipality can't exercise a power that the law doesn't give them. So, what is the law that the municipality has to comply with in this instance and then Joburg Water? It's the bylaw. And what does the bylaw say? And that's why the court declared that Joburg Water was legally required to bill based on that actual meter reading. And we got judgment in our favor for over 6.3 million rand plus interest and costs. So, and the interest on that, because this thing has been dragging on for some time, that interest is going to be over a period of, what is it now, six years.
[04:38][Eon] Sjoh!
[04:39][Jaco] So, it's massive. You can just do the calculations for yourself. And then, of course, the legal cost. Because there was a lot of interlocutory applications, and Joburg Water said XYZ, and then we had to take them to court to compel them to give us documents and information. Yeah, so, no, it's substantial.
[05:01][Eon] At 6.3 million rand plus interest and costs. Wow, that's a lot, hey! Jaco, why should this matter to other businesses listening right now who aren't in a legal dispute with their municipality?
[05:17][Jaco] The sad thing, Eon, is that it's a lot more common than people realize. Any businesses that discharges this industrial effluent, and if you think about it, a ratepayer being billed of estimates rather than actual meters for their electricity or water, must ask themselves whether there aren't real readings. Now, I can tell you now, your listeners, no matter where in the country they are, if they see a spike in their bill for one month, they must just check, and they must read the actual bill. So, if I think now of my electricity bill at my home, the first page is the one where it tells you what the amounts are, and then the second page tell you what the readings are, and there they will be able to see whether it's actual or estimate. Now, the municipalities, generally speaking, because bylaws differ, has got a window period in which they can take estimates. But that's normally at most for three months, and then they have to go back to actuals. And the safest thing for them then, for the client, for your listeners, is to go and take your own readings. Whether it's now for effluent, water, or electricity, and make sure that those readings then tie up to what the municipality gives you. So, record keeping in these things are very, very important. And then, if you've got your own meter installed, it's not a municipality meter, you must ensure that that meter is calibrated as well, so that one can use it.
[06:58][Eon] Absolutely. And, Jaco, for someone who thinks this might apply to them, what should they actually do?
[07:04][Jaco] So, I want to say, phone the Ghostbusters. So, get hold of, first have a look at your account, like I say, and have a look there what it says, estimates. What also happens a lot of times that we see in electricity is that one day the client just gets a massive bill, and then, if you look at the calculations, the municipality is trying to back bill them based on calculations and estimates and that sort of thing. So, have a look at that. Read your electricity account, your effluent account, your water account. See what it says. Read it, first of all, and then, if you see there it talks about estimates or there's calculations, then you need to start worrying. Then they should contact us. That's where we come in.
[07:52][Eon] Yeah, so that's where Hahn & Hahn comes in.
[07:55][Jaco] Yeah, exactly, yeah. So, for businesses, I mean, we represent a lot of businesses all over the country in these sorts of disputes. Not just with municipalities, with landlords, and with Eskom as well. Yeah, so, if your listeners has something like that, have a look. But yeah, it's very important for them to read.
[08:17][Eon] Definitely. Jaco, thank you so much, and well done once again.
[08:22][Jaco] Thank you very much, Eon. And yeah, it's a bittersweet win in the sense that, yeah, because it justice was done. It wasn't just seen to be done. But the reality is it should have never happened.
[08:34][Eon] Exactly.
[08:35][Jaco] But that's where we are, and we need to stand up for ourselves more and more and hold the officials and the departments accountable. So, yeah, thank you.
[08:45][Eon] Just like that, yeah. And that was Jaco Hamman from Hahn & Hahn Attorneys joining us today here on the Legal Talk.