HOUSEHOLDS IN ARREARS OF UTILITY BILLS

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HOUSEHOLDS IN ARREARS OF UTILITY BILLS: 4.

Mdm Halimah Yacob asked the Minister for Trade and Industry (a) how many percent of households are in arrears of their water and electricity bills; (b) what is their average period of arrears; (c) if they are in arrears, what are the circumstances, which will cause Singapore Power to cut off supplies; and (d) whether Singapore Power will re-introduce the voucher scheme to help needy Singaporeans, some of whom are still unemployed or drawing low income.

Mr Lim Hng Kiang: Mr Speaker, Sir, as at June 2004, 9,781 household utilities accounts, comprising0.93% of all household accounts, are in arrears for three months or more. The average period for all accounts in arrears is 1.53 months.

SP Services does not disconnect utilities lightly. SP Servicessendsthree

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reminders within eight weeks after the original bill, if payment is not received. The last reminder is the final notice before electricity is disconnected.

SP Services assists consumers with financial difficulties with suitable instalment plans to pay their arrears. If a consumer defaults on his payment plan, SP Serviceswould try to accommodate by arranging a second payment plan.If the consumer defaults on the second payment plan, his electricity supply will thenbe disconnected. If the consumer continues to default on his payment, SP Services would install a "thimble" in the consumer's water pipe to limit the flow of water.If the consumer whose electricity supply has been disconnected reduces his arrears by 40%, SP Serviceswould normally allow reconnection.

Any household facing financial difficulties may seek assistance from the CDCs and CCCs. The CDCs administer MCYS schemes, such as the Rent and Utilities Assistance Scheme, and the Interim Financial Assistance Scheme. CCCs also offer localised schemes to assist families who need help with their utility bills.

The utility voucher was a one-off programme introduced by SP Servicesduring the economic downturn and the SARS period in July 2003. As at 3rd August 2004, only 5,560 of the 16,800 vouchers, ie, about 33%, were used. There is, therefore, still a significant proportion of the vouchers available for use.

At the National Day Rally on 22nd August 2004,thePrime Ministermentioned that one way of helping households to manage their electricity consumption was to have a pay-as-you-use scheme. SP Services will roll out a pre-paid meter scheme progressively by May next year. This scheme will be available to HDB households whose electricity supply has

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been disconnected due to payment default. Under this scheme, prepaid electricity meters will beinstalled at such households' HDB flats. This would assist the households to consume what they can afford to pay and, therefore, prevent their arrears from increasing. SP Services will announce the details of the scheme at a later date.

Mdm Halimah Yacob (Jurong): Sir, I would just like to ask the Ministerwhether (a)he considers payment of 40% of arrears before reconnection of the utilities is too high; (b)Singapore Power will consider a lower payment before reconnection;(c)the Government can consider bringing forward the implementation period fromMay next year for the pre-paid cash card; and(d) what happens tothose who cannot even afford the cash card.

Mr Lim Hng Kiang: As the hon. Member pointed out, this 40% requirement is a hurdle which our residents have to cross. As MPs, we realise, sometimes, they find difficulty in crossing this hurdle, and that is the reason why thePrime Ministersuggested having a pre-paid card which will allow the defaulter to continue to use, as long as he is able to pay a small amount to his old arrears and pays as he goes along. So, we all agree that the metering system, a pre-paid cash card, is the better way to go. SP Services is trying to roll this out as quickly as possible, but they have to make sure the system is robust. They have to test it out and, therefore, they have to put it on a trial period first, and the earliest they can roll it out is May next year.

Mdm Halimah Yacob: Sir, the Minister did not answer the last question, ie, what happens to those who cannot even afford the pre-paid cash card?

Mr Lim Hng Kiang: As I mentioned in my earlier reply, there are several

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agencies on the ground that the residents can approach for help. They can see the CDC and CCC, and many of them do approach their MPs for help.

Mr Chiam See Tong (Potong Pasir): Sir, may Iask if the Minister would ask SP Services whether they are willing to delay cutting offthe utilities during examination periods?

Mr Lim Hng Kiang: If we look at the process of sending out the reminders and the process of appeals andpayingof instalments, it is a fairly long process. Therefore, if households can manage their budget correctly,there is no reason why disconnection should occur during the examination period.

Mdm Cynthia Phua (Aljunied): Mr Speaker, Sir, I would like to ask the Minister to help these families to review their utilities bills, especially thosecases where their utility supplies have beencut off. They have to be helped to review their billsto reduce their utilities expenses.

Mr Lim Hng Kiang: As an assistance toMembers, SP Services sent out to all MPs the typical utilisation for different household types. So, I am sure all Members, when we receive a case,will look at their bills and, if it is a two-room flat and the bill is on the high side, we try and interview the resident a bit more to find out what appliances they are using which cause them to have such a high bill. I think we do all that regularly in our meet-the-people sessions. SP Services does undertake requests from MPs. As we all know, if we find that the consumption is on the high side, SP Services sometimes goes down toinvestigate to see whether there is a leakage, etc. So, these processes are in place.