Taumata Arowai: NZ Landlord Drinking Water Obligations

As a landlord, understanding your Taumata Arowai Landlord Obligations is now essential. The new drinking water regulations could directly affect you, especially if you supply water to tenants in multi-dwelling rentals with a shared supply.

Who is Taumata Arowai?

Since November 2021, Taumata Arowai (the Water Services Authority) has been New Zealand’s dedicated drinking water regulator, ensuring safe, reliable, and responsibly managed drinking water across Aotearoa. They cover all water supplies, including those for rental complexes.

What Counts as Drinking Water?

The Water Services Act 2021 defines drinking water broadly. It includes not only water for drinking but also water used for brushing teeth, preparing meals, making tea, or washing dishes and utensils used for food. Your supply must be fit for people to drink without health risks and meet the quality levels in the Drinking Water Standards for New Zealand 2022.

Key Changes in 2025 (and how they affect landlords):

• More time to register & comply: Drinking water suppliers now have until November 2028 to register and until November 2030 to meet full legal responsibilities. 

• Small non-household supplies still count: If you provide water to rental complexes, even if 25 people or fewer use it on a typical day, you are still a supplier and must register by 2028. However, you won't need a full Drinking Water Safety Plan if you serve 25 or fewer people.

• Registration renewal: Now every 5 years (not annually).

Who Does This Affect in Practice?

If you supply water to people outside your household, such as tenants in a rental property, these rules apply to you. Your obligations scale with the size of your supply.

You’ll likely need to register with Taumata Arowai if you:

• Provide water at a rental property.

• Manage a business or community facility with its own rainwater supply.

• Supply water to more than 25 people at any one time.

How to Size Your Supply (because size drives your obligations):

Taumata Arowai uses population served to define supply size. For multi-dwelling rentals, you would count the maximum number of staff and visitors on a typical day.

What Compliance Looks Like:

Compliance involves three main aspects: registering, planning, and maintaining.

1. Registering your supply: Every drinking water supplier must be listed in Hinekōrako, Taumata Arowai’s online portal. You provide details about your supply, the number of people it serves, and the water source.

   • Start registration in Hinekōrako
     

2. Creating a Drinking Water Safety Plan (or Acceptable Solution): 

   
   

   

   
   

   A Drinking Water Safety Plan (DWSP) outlines risks to your water supply and practical steps to keep it safe. This roadmap covers the water source, treatment, storage, potential issues, and risk management.

   
   

   • Smaller suppliers can often follow an Acceptable Solution, which are pre-approved pathways for common supply types (e.g., rainwater roof supplies).

   • Download the Drinking Water Safety Plan Template
     

3. Maintaining your supply: This involves showing your water is properly looked after:

   • Water should be tested at required intervals, typically focusing on E. coli.

   • If a test is unsafe, you must immediately notify Taumata Arowai and take action (e.g., issuing a boil water notice).

   • Drinking Water Quality Assurance Rules Reporting Guidance

   • Notify Taumata Arowai about an incident

Consequences of Non-Compliance:

Failing to register or running an unsafe supply can result in heavy penalties, up to $50,000 for individuals or $200,000 for companies. Beyond fines, a contaminated tank can cause illness and damage your reputation.

Key Deadlines:

All unregistered private water supplies must be registered with Taumata Arowai by November 2028 and be fully compliant by November 2030.

FAQs for Landlords:

• We serve fewer than 25 people, are we off the hook? For non-household settings (like rental properties), you are a supplier and must register by 2028 (but no full DWSP is needed if you serve ≤25).
  

• What’s the minimum testing for very small supplies? Routine checks (e.g., E. coli) are still needed, and you must act on results. Very small supplies usually only report exceedances to the regulator.

Your Practical To-Do List:

• Confirm you are a supplier (most landlord-run shared supplies are).

• Work out your population using the official guidance.

• Register in Hinekōrako and fill in your supply's basic details.

• Pick your pathway: consider an Acceptable Solution for small/simple supplies, or build a Drinking Water Safety Plan (DWSP) for larger/complex ones.

• Set up monitoring (e.g., E. coli routine testing). Understand when and how to report.

• Create a one-page incident playbook.

• Book a regular housekeeping day (gutters, tank checks, records).

• Renew your registration every 5 years and keep details current.

Conclusion:

Compliance protects people and demonstrates good guardianship of the water in your care. Registering early and building safe water practices into your routine will help you meet the law, avoid stress, save money, and protect your community.

Disclaimer: This guide is for general information only and should not be relied on as legal or final advice. If your situation requires certainty, please seek independent legal guidance. Information is current as of September 2025. For the latest updates or regulatory details, visit the official Taumata Arowai website.