Account for new businesses

Whether starting a new business or moving to a new premise, you'll need access to our services. Here is what you need to do and consider.

Your water connection

When you move into your property, your water will already be connected. Your settlement agent or property manager will notify us of the new ownership or tenancy.

Once we’ve received the new owner or tenant information, we’ll create your water account and assign you an Electronic Reference Number (ERN). Your bill will contain your new ERN, which is unique to you.

If you don’t receive your water use bill directly from us, find out how you can arrange this.

Registering for an online account

With an online account, you can manage your bills, payments and water use for one or more properties.

To register, you will need your ERN on the back of your bill. Your first bill should arrive within the first 2 months after moving into a new property.

Learn more about how to register and the benefits.

Pricing & charges

We charge you for the water you use and the cost of providing our services.

Your water bill is generally divided into water use charges, service charges and sewer volume charges.

Water use charges – these are the charges for the water you use

Service charges

Sewer volume charges – these charges only apply if you discharge more than 200 kilolitres (kL) of wastewater during a financial year.

If you discharge trade waste, you need to apply for a trade waste permit. When you have a permit, you'll receive a separate annual bill which will only include the trade waste permit charge. Several industries produce trade waste, including retail food such as cafes and restaurants, vehicle or plant servicing, and other commercial and industrial businesses.

Learn more about trade waste charges.

Trade waste

You'll need a trade waste permit if you discharge trade waste to the sewer. Trade waste is any wastewater discharged from your business other than wastewater from office facilities or staff amenities.

Regardless of previous business ownership, all businesses discharging trade waste are required to apply for a permit. Trade waste permits are not transferable, and businesses must obtain written permission in the form of a trade waste permit before discharging to our wastewater system under the Water Services Act 2012. Your permit no longer applies if a sale or tenancy change has occurred. You can apply for a permit online.

This applies to most businesses, including:

cafes
motor mechanics
car washes
dry cleaners
and other commercial and industrial businesses.

Not sure if you need a permit? Learn more about trade waste and what you need to consider.

If you are buying a business

We advise you to ask the current owner to provide their valid trade waste permit and associated approved documents to review the general and any special conditions that may impact you as a business owner.

This is important because the business may have changed processes or practices from its original permit approval. Additional permit conditions may be required to meet current Water Corporation Standards – as any of our standards change, we update our trade waste web pages.

As a new business owner, please apply for a trade waste permit.

If you are buying a food handling business (this can include childcare centres or nursing homes), you must also confirm:

if your proposed business needs pre-treatment in the form of an approved grease arrestor or sink strainers
if the business is connected to a grease arrestor
the grease arrestor installed meets the current sizing standards.

As the new owner, it's your responsibility to complete and submit a new trade waste application and understand the business's waste discharge requirements.

Find out more on trade waste in the food handling and preparation industry.

Backflow prevention

You may need a backflow prevention device on your water connection. A backflow prevention device protects drinking water from contamination or pollution due to backflow.

If you already have a backflow device, you can also learn how to ensure a backflow tester tests your device.

Learn about backflow and if I need prevention.

Smart meters

Smart meters can help you keep track of your water use and improve your business’s water efficiency. Please visit our smart meters page to learn about the benefits of smart meters and how to get one.

You can also read about how other businesses use smart meters to understand their water use, reduce costs, receive alerts, know about leaks before they arise, monitor different operational areas and more.

Services & information

We have several services and information available to help you stay informed about outages impacting your business, save water, prevent and detect leaks and learn how waterwise businesses are saving water.

Water supply alerts – sign up for water supply alerts to stay informed about outages that impact your property. You can get SMS or email updates about scheduled outage times and when your water is back on so your business can prepare when possible.

Leaks prevention and detection – Leaks can be problematic and cost your business money or even lead to property damage. We have leak detection and prevention advice and a list of recommended waterwise specialists who can investigate leaks and repair them.

Waterwise businesses – discover how other businesses in your industry are saving water through simple practices and adopting innovative ways that suit their specific needs. We have advice for businesses to help you with your water efficiency goals.

Data loggers for leak detection - Our data logging and leak detection service can help your business save water through improved visibility of your water use. Learn more.