All
customers deserve our highest level of service but
some such as the elderly and disabled have special
needs. Please register with us to receive the free
services covered in the attached guide, some of
which are listed below:
We can provide you with bills, leaflets and all other communication in large print, Braille or on audio tape. Alternatively, you can contact us and request that we talk through the details of your bill with you. This is known as a ‘talking bill’.
A minicom is a textphone, which is like an ordinary phone, but with a display screen and keyboard. It lets users speak or type in their conversation, and converts the spoken word into text. TVW has a machine, located in the call centre; the contact number is 01707 277149.
Typetalk is run by the RNID, and funded by BT. To benefit from Typetalk, users need a textphone. Once the conversation has been typed in, replies are relayed instantaneously by the Typetalk operator, and will appear on the customer's textphone as text. BT customers dial the normal contact number on their bill, preceded by 18001 (text direct) Other network users dial 0800 959598, but all will eventually be text direct.
Three Valleys Water WaterSure Scheme was introduced to assist low-income households whose water is supplied by a meter. These households are assisted by capping charges, provided they meet specific criteria:
1.
The existing supply is charged
on a metered basis.
2.
The Bill payer or a member
of the household is in receipt of a qualifying benefit
(see below)
3.
There are either:
3 or more children under the age of 19 living in the property or
1 or more persons living in the property who are suffering
from a medical condition that involves significant additional use of
water. (see below)
The WaterSure Scheme caps the level at which charges are payable, so customers would only benefit from the scheme if their current charges are greater than the capped level.
Qualifying Benefits
Someone in your household must be receiving at least one of the benefits or tax credits listed below:
Income Support
Income based Jobseekers Allowance
Working Families Tax Credit
Child Tax Credit (except families in receipt of the family element only)
Housing Benefit
Pension Credit
Council Tax Benefit
Benefits that are not means tested, such as Disability Benefit, Carer's Allowance or Single Persons Council Tax allowance do not qualify under this criteria.
Renal failure requiring home
dialysis (excluded where a contribution to costs is made by a Local Health Authority)
Crohn's disease
Ulcerative Colitis
In addition we may consider other conditions where additional use of water can be justified and a Doctors Certificate can be provided to confirm this.
If you feel that on the basis of the above you might qualify for the scheme, please give us your details by clicking here so that we can send you an application form. Thank you.
Extra protection for vulnerable customers. If a customer feels vulnerable for any reason, they have the opportunity to register a password with us. If our staff need to visit the customer they will need to communicate the password to the customer before they can enter the property.
We hold a register of all customers who use a dialysis machine at their home. It is vitally important that these patients do not suffer from supply interruptions. Customer Service Staff are aware of such patients, and would contact them if an emergency situation arose.
Meters are normally placed in a position that is accessible for reading. If a customer has particular special needs and requires additional readings, we offer up to four of these per year. Contact us to discuss your requirements.
Water delivery in the event of prolonged interruption to your water supply
