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Tiffany Liang

More than 90 per cent of Hongkongers living in subdivided flats have said they were still being overcharged for water by their landlords, according to a poll by two concern groups, only nine months after a law was passed to prevent such practices.
The study, which was jointly conducted by the Tsuen Wan Old District Tenants Action and the Caritas Community Centre in Tsuen Wan, was released at a press conference on Monday. The poll surveyed 243 people living in subdivided flats and other subpar housing in Tsuen Wan from December to January.
According to the survey, 90 per cent of respondents said they had paid HK$13 to HK$18 (US$1.65 to US$2.29) per cubic metre of water each month.
The amount was higher than rates paid by households not living in subdivided flats to the Water Supplies Department (WSD), which does not require residents to pay for the first 14 cubic metres before charging a rate capped at HK$9.05 per cubic metre for further usage.
Many low-income households living in subdivided flats in rundown buildings are often forced to share a water meter with their fellow tenants and do not receive separate bills. Such living conditions allow landlords or principal tenants to decide the amount that each occupant pays.
Are subdivided flats’ landlords exploiting Hong Kong tenants ahead of new law?
Last May, the Legislative Council passed a bill that forbade anyone from reselling water at a higher price than the official rate set by the department. Initially proposed by legislator Alice Mak Mei-kuen, the law aims to prevent landlords from overcharging tenants, a common practice in subdivided flats.
Anyone found to be in breach of the law can be fined up to HK$10,000.
However, concerns groups that advocate for residents living in subdivided flats have said the law has proved ineffective in stopping landlords from overcharging for utilities.
“The ban is like a ‘paper tiger’ without proactive law enforcement,” said Chan Wai-hung, a member of the Tsuen Wan Old District Tenants Action.
In October, Legco passed a broader government bill to impose tenancy control, featuring restrictions on rents, tenure, as well as water and electricity charges.

But Chan called on authorities to step up enforcement of the regulations, citing a reply from the WSD which said it had received 20 reports of overcharging between last May and January and none of the cases had been prosecuted.
The survey also found that 73.5 per cent of respondents did not know about the ban on overcharging for water, while 40 per cent said they would not report their landlords even if they were forced to pay unreasonable prices.
“Tenants may be afraid of their landlord because if they report the situation to the government, their landlord may not let them continue renting the house,” said Lam Wing-tung, a member of the Caritas Community Centre.
Lam suggested the government should improve public understanding of the law and install separate water meters for occupants living in subdivided flats to increase transparency.
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A housewife who lives in a subdivided flat said at the press conference on Monday that she had tried speaking to her landlord about utility charges, but they had said: “other landlords were charging similar rates”.
The housewife, surnamed Yip, said she was supposed to pay HK$150 for water over four months, but her landlord was charging her a fixed monthly payment of HK$200.
“The overcharging is really unfair to us,” she said, adding that she had only realised she was being overcharged when she spoke to concern groups.
Yip urged authorities to improve their communication with landlords and clarify the current regulations.


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Hong Kong housing

‘Hongkongers living in subpar housing continue to pay inflated water prices 9 months after authorities outlawed practice’

Many residents living in subpar housing share water meters with other tenants, allowing landlords to decide utility costs. Photo: Sam Tsang

NGOs have called for the government to better enforce the ban on overcharging for utilities, a common practice in subdivided flats in rundown buildings. Photo: Sam Tsang

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Survey by concern groups finds 90 per cent of tenants in subpar housing in Tsuen Wan say they were overcharged for water by landlords
Overcharging for utilities is prohibited in bill passed nine months ago, but NGOs urge authorities to better enforce and explain legislation change



Survey by concern groups finds 90 per cent of tenants in subpar housing in Tsuen Wan say they were overcharged for water by landlords.
