EXPATS and foreign home-owners were caught on the hop this week after they found out that the venue for paying water bills had changed – without much warning.

Those that have traditionally paid their bills at Didim Council building have been advised that the venue has been changed.

It is now across town in a ground floor office, under the title Aski Genel Müdürlüğü, in Koçkar Cad, about 100 metres down the side of Halk Bank, off Ataturk Boulevard.

The change in venue is due to shake-up in local government, in which the responsibility of water and the supply of it was switched from Didim to Aydin Province Council.

The new office will be staffed up to about ten office workers, including cashiers.

However, the change, which occurred on Monday (Sept 22) caught Turkish and foreign residents on the hop when they visited the Didim Council office to pay their water bills.

They were politely advised to go to the new office instead.

Queries on standing orders from banks to pay water bills are presently being sorted out. Those on pre-paid water meters are unaffected by the change.

Council tax will still have to be paid at the Didim Council office.