Wellington City Council has issued a second apology to ratepayers after uncovering another error in its 2025–26 rates calculations — though this latest mistake means households will pay slightly less than expected.
The admission comes only weeks after the Council revealed it had undercharged the household and commercial sludge levy in invoices sent out in August and November 2025. At the time, officials promised a full review of the billing system to understand how the error occurred.
That review has now revealed a separate issue: while Wellington City Council’s own rates were correctly invoiced, the regional council portion — set by Greater Wellington Regional Council — was overcharged by an average of $10 per residential account.
Chief Strategy and Finance Officer Andrea Reeves says the Council is “sincerely apologising” for both mistakes and is committed to putting things right. “We are fixing the sludge levy error and the regional council rates error in the invoices people will receive in the week beginning 3 February,” she said. “Ratepayers will see a credit to reverse the overcharge, and an amount for the sludge levy undercharge — so the catch‑up will be lower than we initially expected.”
No penalties or interest will be charged. Reeves says the goal is simple: ratepayers should pay only what they are legally required to pay, nothing more.
For many Christians, the moment echoes the biblical call to integrity in leadership — “to act justly, love mercy, and walk humbly” — a reminder that public institutions, like individuals, are at their best when they acknowledge mistakes openly and make amends. The Council’s proactive communication, including social media updates and a detailed apology letter accompanying next week’s invoices, reflects that posture of humility.
Both Wellington City Council and Greater Wellington have now completed a full review of all rates data and say they are confident the assessments are correct. Further process improvements are planned to prevent similar issues in future.
Ratepayers wanting an updated regional council rates assessment can contact the Council at rates@wcc.govt.nz.
