Water Industry Act 1991

28 Customer service committees

(1) Every company holding an appointment under Chapter I of this Part shall be allocated by the Director to a committee established and maintained by him for the purpose, in relation to such companies as may be allocated to it, of carrying out—

(a) the functions assigned by this Act to such a committee; and

(b) such other functions as the committees maintained under this section may be required to carry out by the Director.

(2) The committees maintained under this section shall be known as customer service committees.

(3) There shall not at any time be more than ten customer service committees, but it shall be the duty of the Director so to exercise his powers under this section to establish and maintain customer service committees and to allocate companies to those committees as to secure that at all times—

(a) such customer service committees are maintained; and

(b) such allocations under subsection (1) above are in force,

as he considers appropriate for ensuring that the interests of the customers and potential customers of the companies for the time being holding appointments under Chapter I of this Part are effectively represented.

(4) A customer service committee shall consist of—

(a) a chairman appointed by the Director after consultation with the Secretary of State; and

(b) such number (not less than ten nor more than twenty) of other members appointed by the Director as the Director may determine.

(5) In appointing persons to be members of a customer service committee the Director shall have regard to—

(a) the desirability of the persons appointed being persons who have experience of, and have shown capacity in, some matter relevant to—

(i) the functions of a water undertaker or sewerage undertaker; or

(ii) the carrying out of those functions in relation to any area by a company which the Director has allocated, or is proposing to allocate, to that committee;

and

(b) the desirability of—

(i) the committee including one or more persons with experience of work among, and the special needs of, disabled persons; and

(ii) persons appointed by virtue of this paragraph including disabled persons.

(6) An appointment of a person to hold office as the chairman of a customer service committee shall be for a term not exceeding four years.

(7) Subject to subsection (6) above, the chairman and other members of a customer service committee shall hold and vacate office in accordance with the terms of their appointments and, notwithstanding that subsection, shall on ceasing to hold office be eligible for re-appointment.

(8) The provisions of Schedule 4 to this Act shall have effect with respect to customer service committees.