Shining the spotlight on Nikita Novoselov, Customer Advisor
2 November 2022
We’re shining the spotlight on the individuals across Welsh Water who make our teams special. This week we’re speaking to Nikita, who works within our billing team, to find out more about his and his team’s role.
Can you talk us through your role?
My role consists of speaking to customers on the phone in the billing support team – so this means answering any queries or questions customers may have about their bill. I get all kinds of calls coming through to me – from something small like they’re moving house or business premises, or they simply need the charges on their bill to be explained to them, to something larger like an ongoing complicated case that nobody else can sort.
They’re the kinds of problems I love to get my teeth into – when it’s an ongoing issue there’s great satisfaction in telling the customer I have finally sorted it now. Another key part of my role is supporting my team. I was one of the first to do hybrid working and use our new software remotely, so I also helped other team members make the move to hybrid working.
How do you work with businesses within your role?
Given I speak to customers about bill queries, sometimes it may be a household customer calling us, but equally it also may be a customer who owns a business. Often, they are moving business premises, or they might be behind on their payments and may even be close to having their water disconnected.
We can often work with business customers to find a way to make their bills affordable or create a new payment plan that works for them. Even if it’s not your home, having your business disconnected is a last resort and can have big repercussions so we try and help customers where we can before it gets to that point.
With customers who own their own businesses, you can see the passion they have for their company, whether it’s a hairdressing salon or a pharmacy. You always want to make sure everything’s running smoothly for them and that they’re happy with everything before you end the call.
Can you give us an example of how you’ve helped a business customer recently?
At the moment we’ve had a bit of a tricky case with a customer who runs their own dairy farm. Within the farm they have a few outbuildings and milking sheds. There are two water supplies going into their premises, and one included a very old pipe that the customer told me was put down by the Italians in World War 2! This pipe was in their land and was leaking. As it was their responsibility, they replaced the pipe, but it had taken them a long time to notice the leak as the leak was in the middle of a field.
Between the leak starting and them fixing the pipe, they racked up a massive bill for water and sewerage charges. The customer asked us for support to help him. Given the water likely didn’t return into our sewers, we’re therefore working with him to discount that from his bill to make it more affordable. We are also arranging an inspection of the pipe replacement just to ensure it’s definitely fixed, and they won’t get another large bill in the near future. While they may not be a large company, every little helps!
What do you like to do outside work?
Unfortunately, I am one of those ‘gym people’ who like to keep fit and active! Otherwise, I’m a foodie, I really like trying new places to eat. Me and my partner usually do date night on a Saturday where we try something different. It might be a different kind of activity to normal or a different place to eat. I also like looking after my home, me and my partner are both animal and plant lovers so there’s plenty of animals and plants to look after!