Objection to Additional Charges

An objection can be made to any additional costs but not to fixed charges. When making an additional charge Council is required to take into account a range of factors such as the benefit of the work to the applicant (compared with the community), what caused the work to become necessary (including any frivolous or unreasonable actions by a third party), and the willingness of the applicant to resolve issues without having to hold a hearing. If you want to object you must do so in writing within 15 working days of receiving your invoice. There is no application form to lodge an objection. However, objections should be made in writing, refer to the relevant consent and outline the basis for the objection.

Refunds & Discounts

Refunding a charge, or part of a charge, is known as a 'remission'. You may seek a remission of the whole (including the deposit) or part of your charges if you believe the charge is unlawful, unreasonable, or in excess of the actual cost of the work undertaken by the Council. Like the process for considering objections (above), Timaru District Council will take into account the particular circumstances of the application, the beneficiaries of the work, and whether the additional charges are a fair reflection of the actual costs of the work undertaken by Timaru District Council. Applications for remission of charges must also be made in writing to Timaru District Council and will be considered on a case-by-case basis.

Section 36AA of the Resource Management Act 1991 requires local authorities to provide for a discount on administrative charges in circumstances where a resource consent application is not processed within the statutory timeframe(s). It is compulsory for local authorities to provide this discount and therefore applicants do not have to apply for the same. Any discount of charges will be automatically deducted from the additional charges that are invoiced in relation to the application. If there are no additional charges, the applicant will receive a discount on any fixed charges that were paid. The discount is calculated at 1% per day of the total fees payable (up to 50%) for everyday over the statutory time frame it took the local authority to process the application.

Last updated: 24 Feb 2021