More than 3,600 council tenants in Kingston have received a refund on their water rates after the High Court ruled that the council overcharged tenants for water.
Kingston Council has confirmed that 3,670 current tenant households have so far received their refund to their rent account.
However, no former tenant refunds have been processed yet.
The council said the processing of former tenants will follow the current tenant accounts.
So far, the council has refunded £1,388,037 to current tenants.
Last year the council set aside £750,000 as a provision when the amount and timing of the liability was unknown.
In October the Court of Appeal confirmed a previous judgement that Kingston Council is liable to local authority tenants for water overcharges dating back to April 1, 2002.
The court unanimously ruled that the council was a water reseller rather than agency, meaning the authority failed unlawfully to pass on discounts to tenants.
The council said it “welcomed” the judgement and said it “brought clarity to the situation” and that the council was committed to making any payments as quickly as possible.
The council says the average refund is approximately £27 per year, per household, but this will vary depending on the level of water rates paid.
The refund has been applied to current tenants’ rent accounts. If the refund into the rent account means a tenant is in credit, they can receive a refund on this balance.