Rejected petition Refund to customers of Dwr Cymru and Hafren Dyfrdwy for every discharge of untreated sewage
Yet again we find ourselves looking at the news to find that Dwy Cymru and Hafren Dyfrdwy are discharging raw sewage into rivers and out to sea. Not only does this have a significant environmental impact (previously raised in petitions), but this is also a failure to provide the service which customers, both residential and business, are paying for. We propose that for each incident, the customers of Dwr Cymru and Hafren Dyfrdwy should automatically be entitled to a refund or reduced rates.
More details
Under the consumer rights law in the UK (Consumer Rights Act 2015), those that do not get the service that they have paid for, they are entitled to a refund or discount if the service cannot be done again. This also make the provision that the service received should be to the standard expected, in this instance we are being charged for the treatment of sewage, which is not being fulfilled. In 2020, 105,000 incidents were recorded where sewage was dumped into our water courses and out to sea, amounting to just over 287 incidents per day. The refund would not only be in line with our consumer rights, but would hopefully act as a financial deterrent to these companies.
Why was this petition rejected?
It’s about something that the Senedd or Welsh Government is not responsible for.
Petitions to the Senedd must call for a specific action that falls within the powers of the Senedd or Welsh Government.
Schedules 7A and 7B of the Government of Wales Act 2006 set out the issues which are ‘restricted’ or ‘reserved’ to the UK Parliament - i.e. areas where only the UK Parliament or Government, not the Senedd or Welsh Government, can act.
Paragraph 72 of Schedule 7A reserves the sale and supply of goods and services to consumers. The reservation covers the terms on which goods and services are sold and supplied to consumers.
As a result, it is not possible for the Senedd to take the action called for by your petition.
Further information about the powers and responsibilities of the Senedd can be found here: https://senedd.wales/how-we-work/our-role/powers/
We only reject petitions that don’t meet the petition standards
Rejected petitions are published in the language in which they were submitted