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Section 99A - Separate charge by park owner not to be more than cost of supply for use of utility

Section 99A of the Manufactured Homes (Residential Parks) Act 2003 was introduced on 1 March 2011 to prevent park owners from charging more for the supply of a utility to residents than the actual cost charged to the park owner by their supply authority. In the case of electricity supply, section 99A requires that only the actual cost for the electricity is passed on to the home owner and no extra fees or charges are added to the home owner’s electricity bill. Park owners who charge home owners in excess of the cost of their supplied electricity may be in breach of the Act and penalties apply.

It is important to note that park owners may include a component cost in the site rent to cover the cost of providing electricity and maintaining the electricity network or other infrastructure charges. This will vary from park to park depending on the business model used by the park owner. Individual Site Agreements should capture these arrangements.

If park owners need to review and/or adjust the amount of site rent to cover costs outside the terms of the Site Agreement, they must follow the procedures outlined in the Act. Home owners still retain the ability under the Act to challenge increases to site rent they believe are not justified.

Letter to Park Owners from the Director-General of the Department of Communities

The Director-General of the Department of Communities wrote to all park owners on 28 October 2011. In her capacity as the Chief Executive responsible for the regulatory functions of the Manufactured Homes (Residential Parks) Act 2003, the Director-General reminded park owners of their obligations under section 99A of the Act. See full letter in the document download section to the right.