ÐÇ¿Õ´«Ã½

Like any local authority, at Neath Port Talbot council in South Wales we experience problems with people not clearing their rent and water bills on time.

So we introduced a £250 prize draw we call "Rent Bonanza" as an incentive for people to pay their rent and water charges punctually.

Our first draw was in September 2002 and we've now done three draws; they happen once a quarter.

The prize money is taken out of the Housing Revenue Account.

We create a list of the residents who are up-to-date with their rent and water bills and put this list into an Excel spreadsheet. We use a random number generation system to pick a winner.

This week, we have 9883 residents, of whom 8027 are up to date with payments. So, even though the chance of any one resident winning the Rent Bonanza is extremely low, there's enough of an incentive for people to clear their bills. Already we've noticed dramatic improvements in rent payments. Most of the "fringe" payers – the ones who always pay their bills, but often a week late – pay on time these days.

The response, overall, has been very positive. It did take a couple of months to get approval from the local councillors – they didn't think we should be rewarding people for doing something they ought to be doing anyway. But there are some people who have always paid their bills on time and we want them to feel that it's appreciated.

The quarterly draw is definitely going to stay a regular event. We want to ensure that people keep paying their rent on time and that it becomes second nature.