Why is cost of water is differnet in differnet area from same company

bob_a_builder

Applies to Thames Water, not sure about others
While checking up why I'm paying so much for water I found out that depending on were you live you will pay a differnet amount on the rate per pound, varying from 49p up to 63p.

I know water isn't yet on a national grid system, but would have thought it would have been the same across one company.

The area spilts are not across massive geograpgic areas

refer to page 2 of this pdf file
http://www.thameswateruk.co.uk/en_gb/Downloads/PDFs/PBS_Charges_2006-07_Unmetered_126kb.pdf

Anyway checking the TW site about moving to a meter, indicates a max payment with 5 heavy users in a house would pay £405, so would seem to be a no brainer to move to a meter since they are currently charging me £600 !! - only 4 in house, probably nearer their average figure - so on the face of it a big saving in store.

Also slightly galled to find that all the revenue/profits are flowing back to Germany ,both TW and Npower (my elec/gas supplier) all owned by RWE group

Cardew

In Severn Trent area there are 8 charging zones; the water charge(per 1£ Rateable Value) is between 70p and 89p, and sewerage 63p and 84p. The highest zone for water is not the highest for sewarage.

Strangely everyone pays exactly the same for metered water and sewerage; 109p per cu mtr for water and 73p for sewerage.

oldwiring

Cardew wrote:

In Severn Trent area there are 8 charging zones; the water charge(per 1£ Rateable Value) is between 70p and 89p, and sewerage 63p and 84p. The highest zone for water is not the highest for sewarage.

Strangely everyone pays exactly the same for metered water and sewerage; 109p per cu mtr for water and 73p for sewerage.

Have the areas where a high poundage on RV is charged low agrregate RVs when compared to other areas in the company's coverage area?. Look at it this way. Company cost to supply (figures very simplified) £2M ;Aggregate RV £20M
= 10p in £. If the aggreagate RV is £10M the poundage would need increase to 29p in £. Could that be an explanation?

tigermatt

Even though it's not across a large geographic area, it is probably calculated on the number of residents in that charging zone, the average amount of water used etc.

Cardew

oldwiring wrote:

Have the areas where a high poundage on RV is charged low agrregate RVs when compared to other areas in the company's coverage area?. Look at it this way. Company cost to supply (figures very simplified) £2M ;Aggregate RV £20M
= 10p in £. If the aggreagate RV is £10M the poundage would need increase to 29p in £. Could that be an explanation?

Interesting. My first thought was also along those lines.

However the highest water charge zone doesn't have the highest sewerage charge. I cannot think each zone is now treated as a separate district with its own budget especially as the majority(?) of properties are now metered

Also for that theory to hold up, shouldn't each charging zone have different metered charges?

Given rateable value has not existed for 17 years, I suspect it is tied to some historical and irrelevant data - number of horse troughs?

oldwiring

Cardew wrote:

.....Also for that theory to hold up, shouldn't each charging zone have different metered charges?

Given rateable value has not existed for 17 years, I suspect it is tied to some historical and irrelevant data - number of horse troughs?

Surely as meters relate charge directly to usage the rates per m3 will be the same.

Agitate for more horse troughs if it gets the poundage down:laugh:

deanos

Its a complicated issue on what they can charge, bascially they have to meet OFWAT targets like leakage for one example to allow them to charge more when prices are up for renewal.

Seven Trent recently got found out by OFWAT for making the figures up to make them look good and get a larger price increase hense why they have now got to refund customers they will get hit very hard when they ask to put prices up next time.