Water bill outstanding - 2008

scar1_2

Hi,

Wonder if anyone here can advise best thing to do in this instance.
In Nov 2007 I moved from Scotland to England (Surrey) and was renting a place. I setup all utility bills (or so i thought) on entry and settled when left.

I moved back to Scotland in Dec 2008 and I have now just received a bill from a water company in Surrey for the year 2008 approx. £250.00. The miss understanding was that in Scotland your water is included in council tax, hence did not automatically look for this as a separate utility bill when I moved down. So now im back living in Scotland and they have just sent me a letter (addressed to me isshh, spelling is incorrect) final demand red letter, pay within 10 days etc...

Before I contact them just thought i'd get some advice in what they actually can and can't do.

Thanks in advance..... advice as always is appreciated!
Steve

Cardew

Not sure what advice you require?

Are you disputing the amount of the bill or if you have to pay anything at all?

Water bills in England are for the year 01 April to 31 March. So you should have had 2 bills - Nov 07 to Mar 08 and Apr 08 to Dec 08.

You also pay a water bill and a sewerage bill - often combined on the one bill.

You should have contacted the water company and told them you were in residence. You are legally bound to pay for water and sewerage when you move in.

If it is a valid bill you have to pay, there is no provision, like gas and electric bills, that they can't back-bill more than 12 months.

scar1_2

Thanks, this is exactly the sort of information I required. I agree I should have notified them when I moved and my time machine won't start this morning so can't rectify that one.

Ill contact them today and make some arrangement!

Cheers again!