People may soon have the option of insuring their utility accounts after the Northern Municipal Council approved a proposal in this regard.

The move, spearheaded by the council’s technical committee chairman Abdullah Al Qubaisi, is aimed at protecting families from accumulated bills if the head of the family dies.

The GDN reported on Saturday that councillors have urged the Electricity and Water Authority (EWA) to consider insuring the utility accounts of customers, similar to the way banks did for the loans they gave.

Banks take out loan protection insurance to avoid relatives from being burdened with unpaid dues in case the primary account holder dies.

“This is an age-old proposal and it has been written on paper for a very long time; now it’s time for implementation,” said Mr Al Qubaisi during the council’s weekly meeting.

“In some cases, following the death of the breadwinner, families have been referred to the court immediately by EWA and their accounts frozen causing an additional burden.

“The previous Electricity and Water Affairs Minister had stated that families don’t inherit the accumulated debt if the head of the family dies but what is happening now is different.

The proposal was supported by the council’s public relations and information committee chairman Hussain Al A’ali.

However, he highlighted that it should be offered not as a mandatory requirement but as an option, especially to families with limited income.

“People are now unable to pay accumulated bills so we will be adding an additional burden of insurance fees,” he said.

“We should propose that accounts be cleared if a person dies or that the government pays and not permit families to inherit utility bills.

“There are people who are unable to even maintain their homes which are in a dilapidated condition so asking them to pay additional fees seems unreasonable.”

Council’s financial, administrative and legislative committee chairwoman Zaina Jassim said making insurance an option and not compulsory will help clear any confusion.

“We have seen cases where minors have been burdened with thousands of dinars in debt because the head of the family has died and there’s no one else to carry the burden,” said councillor Faisal Shabeeb.

“This is unfair and unrealistic; this proposal will provide a solution and an option for people.”

Councillors have previously told the GDN about a widow who was asked to pay thousands in accumulated bills after her husband died in 2008.

The debt continued to pile up until it reached BD8,000 and the case was referred to court, with all the family members’ bank accounts frozen and a travel ban imposed.

In another case a Bahraini family owed the EWA BD6,000.

The proposal will now be referred to Works, Municipalities Affairs and Urban Planning Minister Essam Khalaf to submit it to the EWA.

reem@gdn.com.bh

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