Billing system

Clear rules and procedures for issuing, monitoring and documenting bills and payments.

DESCRIPTION

In a billing system, the billing and payment patterns are regulated, monitored, and externally audited. The bills should be accurate and transparent; the transactions, procedures, and services should be correctly documented; and customer records should properly be stored and protected.^1,2

PURPOSE & LINK TO INTEGRITY

A sound billing system allows for the identification and adjustment of inappropriate and incorrect billing and payment practices, such as bribery, theft of petty cash, or money laundering.¹ Additionally, accurate bills are an important tool of communication that can encourage water consumers to conserve more water.³

KEY REQUIREMENTS

• Does your organization have the required IT infrastructure or filing system in place to set up a billing system?
• Have you also considered implementing the tool Transparent bills alongside the billing system?

HOW TO

A sound billing system includes:⁴

• The use of standard invoices and standard timeframes for how often bills are issued
• Transparent and user-friendly procedures for payment (e.g. mobile payment) and checking of customer account balances
• The development and maintenance of supporting documentation (for all expenditures and incomes)
• The implementation and verification of system processes
• A good filing system to keep everything in order.

You might also consider getting ISO certification. The ISO is a worldwide federation of national standard bodies. The following ISO standard is applicable for this tool:

ISO 14452:2012 Network services billing — Requirements (https://www.iso.org/obp/ui/#iso:std:iso:14452:ed-1:v1:en): The purpose of this International Standard is to provide a market-based and market-sensitive way of dealing with the concerns of customers about the billing practices of utility network service providers. Billing is a major source of complaints to companies and industry ombudsmen.

KEY GUIDING DOCUMENTS

K’akumu, 2007, Toward effective governance of water services in Kenya, Water Policy 9 (2007) 529–543, IWA Publishing, UK

Konove, E., Griffith, E., Wilson, A., and Sepulveda, J., 2011, The Billing Process. Sound Practices to Ensure Financial Integrity, Panel contribution to the 70^th Annual Meeting of the South Eastern Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (SASHTO) in Louisville, USA

FURTHER  READINGS

British Columbia Ministry of Health, no year, Billing Integrity Program, British Columbia Ministry of Health, Canada, http://www.health.gov.bc.ca/msp/infoprac/bip.html, accessed March 2013,

Spartanburg Regional Health Services District, no year, Guide of Integrity. Standards of Ethical Conduct, Spartanburg Regional Health Services District, Inc., USA

Singh, S., 2013, The Bill of Confusion , Asian Water and Wastewater, http://sahanasingh.wordpress.com/2013/03/21/the-bill-of-confusion/, accessed 19.11.2015

MANGO, 2012, Financial Management Essentials – A Handbook for NGOs, Management Accounting for Non-governmental Organizations (Mango), UK

Gaudin, 2004, Transparent prices for municipal water. Impact of pricing and billing practices on residential water use, Midwest Economics Association Annual Meetings, USA

World Bank, 2008, Developing effective billing and collection practices, Water and Sanitation Program, The World Bank, USA

UN-HABITAT, 1999, Community managed system for operation, billing and collection of water charges, United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN-HABITAT), Kenya

FULL REFERENCES

1. British Columbia Ministry of Health, no year, Billing Integrity Program, British Columbia Ministry of Health, Canada, http://www.health.gov.bc.ca/msp/infoprac/bip.html, accessed March 2013,
2. Spartanburg Regional Health Services District, no year, Guide of Integrity. Standards of Ethical Conduct, Spartanburg Regional Health Services District, Inc., USA
3. Singh, S., 2013, The Bill of Confusion , Asian Water and Wastewater, http://sahanasingh.wordpress.com/2013/03/21/the-bill-of-confusion/, accessed 19.11.2015
4. Konove, E., Griffith, E., Wilson, A. and Sepulveda, J., 2011, The Billing Process. Sound Practices to Ensure Financial Integrity, Panel contribution to the 70^th Annual Meeting of the South Eastern Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (SASHTO) in Louisville, USA