Outrageous bill and idiotic water company!!

techno_2

Hi all, i am a single man in a one bed flat and not there half the time. I got a bill for £138 for the 5th october to end of march. It stated i had used 42 cubic meters of water which was high as i have not been there and don't use much anyway. I checked the meter with the stop valve operated and the dial was still going round.

I rang 3 valleys and told them what was going on, as i am a tenant i had to contact the landlord which would then contact the company managing the freehold which were responsible for the underground pipes and only then would they send a technician, i told the company of the new reading i took which confirmed there was a leak as it worked out on the 23rd of april i had used 32 cubic metres in the space of a month, 10 less than the six months before!!!!!

There response a few days later was to send me a higher bill of £175, where do i stand on this as there office is closed and i am raging about this, i have sent a email but will probably have to wait till tuesday more than likely.

Cardew

Welcome to the forum.

Why is the bill outrageous? and why are the water company idiotic?

If the leak is 'on your side' of the meter, it is your landlord's responsibility. The water company supply the water - the leak is not their fault.

It is something to take up with your landlord.

After the leak is repaired by your landlord/freeholder you may get a goodwill payment by the water company. However I suggest you don't approach them telling them they are at fault - or you may lose that 'goodwill'.

Stalker

Your water company should provide 1 hours assistance in looking for leaks in accordance with the Guarenteed Service Standards which you landlord may be able to use if there is a leak. In addition if you want to complain then you could use a system like disputer.com to enter your complaint to your water company. It has a complete escalation procedure to the MD and then the Ombudsman.