Public Sector Scotland customer webinar
Questions and answers (Q&As)
When will the new charges for 2023/2024 be published?
Wholesale charges are currently being finalised between Scottish Water and the Water Industry Commission for Scotland (WICS). We'll get in touch with you as soon as these have been published.
Will the process for estimating my charges change?
Yes. Our previous system, Hi-Affinity, calculated estimates using the average daily consumtion (ADC) which is determined by meter readings for your premises taken over the previous 500 day period. Our new billing system will calculate estimates using your last two meter readings or alternatively, the consumption in the same period of the previous year.
Will there be any impact to how my bills are produced over the period that you migrate to the new billing system?
No. You will continue to receive your consolidated bills as normal. Your first bill produced from our new billing system will be issued at the beginning of March covering the month of February.
Is there a risk that the new billing system will impact billing up to the end of the financial year?
No. We will bill you as normal using the current billing system, Hi-Affinity, up to the end of January. Then, your next bill will be issued on or around Wednesday, 1 March, once we move to our new billing system, and this will cover the month of February.
Will my customer reference number change?
No. Your customer reference number will stay the same.
Will the meter location still be provided in the new consolidated billing CSV format?
Meter locations won't be shown in the new CSV file but we can a provide separate report listing your meter locations. To request this, please contact your Account Manager who will be happy to help.
Can my Scottish Assessors Association (SAA) reference number be included in my consolidated billing CSV file?
Your SAA reference number doesn’t currently show in your CSV file and won’t show in your new CSV file although we will take this into consideration for future development.
Has the consolidated billing EDI file been tested and approved by the montioring & targeting (M&T) providers?
We've been in touch with all M&T providers and issued them with sample files of our new consolidated billing formats. We encourage you to engage with your M&T company to ensure the appropriate updates to their systems are in place.
Before the new billing system is launched, can Business Stream provide me with a summary of my sites showing details like meter serial numbers, Supply point IDs, and the location of my water meters?
Yes. We can provide this to you on request. Please get in touch with your dedicated Account Manager who will be happy to help.
If there an error on my account, how will you amend my account?
If there is an error on your account, your invoices will be credited in full and rebilled.
Will we see a reduction in credits and rebills on my invoices?
The new billing system will align with market data, held by the Central Market Agency (CMA), which means any changes will be notified to us so we expect credits and rebills to be reduced. Any amendments that are carried out will be credited and rebilled in full.
Can I request for multiple email addresses to be linked to each of my accounts?
Yes. More than one user can access each of your accounts. Each user will be required to create a My Business Stream account using their unique email address to log in.
I have more than one consolidated billing account. Will all of my accounts be shown when I log in to My Business Stream? And can I request specific account permissions for multiple users?
Yes. All of your services will be shown in your My Business Stream portal and you can manage the permissions of each user linked to your accounts so that some can view more than one account.
How do I create my new log in details for My Business Stream?
We'll be in touch with you when it's time to set up your new My Business Stream log in details. If you have multiple accounts with us, we'll ask you to choose any one of your customer reference numbers to log in. On accessing, you'll see all of your other sites shown on your My Business Stream dashboard.
The current requirement is to submit a meter reading within five days of it being taken but sometimes this can be challenging. Can this period be extended at all?
No, unfortunately the requirement is to submit a meter reading within five days cannot be extended as it is a market requirement for all retailers.
Is there an average daily consumption (ADC) calculation function in the upgraded My Business Stream portal?
No. We calculate your average daily consumption (ADC) using our billing system. The more meter readings you can provide, by uploading them to My Business Stream, the more accurate the produced ADC will be.
The current meter location provided isn’t very clear. Can I be given a better description?
Yes. Please contact your dedicated Account Manager or Case Owner who will be happy to help.
Will my automated meter reading (AMR) data be accessible on the upgraded My Business Stream?
No, your AMR data is will still be available using the current Utilities Manager platform. Please continue to access this information here.
I currently have unique references allocated against each, or some of, my accounts. Will this detail be carried into the new billing system and shown on my upgraded My Business Stream account?
Yes. Any unique references you have created will be carried across to our new billing system and shown on your upgraded My Business Stream account.
If I add a new unique reference to my account on My Business Stream, will this appear on my next bill? And is there a way to bulk upload meter readings?
Yes. If you update your unique references in My Business Stream, this update will be shown on your future bills and you'll still be able to bulk upload meter readings.
If I have previously received high consumption alerts, will I be able to view a record of these on my upgraded My Business Stream account?
No, this information won't be available in the upgraded My Business Stream portal at this time although we will take this into consideration for future development.
What is the functionality of the ‘notifications’ tab on the My Business Stream portal?
The notifications tab provides information about any issues related the water supply for the area around your business premises - for example, a water quality issue or a service interruption.
Does the upgraded My Business Stream allow me to search by meter serial number?
No, the new My Business Stream doesn't currently provide this funcitonality although we will take this into consideration for future development.
Will I still be able to download a zip file of all of my invoices?
You'll still be able to access and download any single-site PDF bill zip files using our upgraded My Business Stream. However, you’ll no longer be able to download historical single site PDF bills as bundles so please carry out any bundle downloads before this date.
Can I request a sample of the ‘xlsx’ summary file?
Yes. We've provided a link to download sample format files in the webinar documentation email that we've sent to you. Alternatively, you can request this from your Account Manager.
When will the upgraded My Business Stream be launched?
Our upgraded My Business Stream portal will be launched on Monday, 30 January 2023.
How and when will I be required to log in to My Business Stream?
Once we switch to our upgraded My Business Stream portal on Monday, 30 January, you’ll receive an email from us requesting that you re-register your information to access your upgraded My Business Stream account. The email will provide a link to our website where you can complete the process for instant access.