Surface Water Drainage - and Flats

coupleuk

I live in a 2 storey block of 6 flats - there are 2 flats on each floor and therefore only the top two flats actually have a roof.

Why is it that we all have to pay this surface water charge when the roof won't change its square footage no matter if there was 1 floor or 20 floors. The same volume of rain water would fall on/off it.

Wessex Water (our sewerage company) state that on average the SWD charge per household is £19 per year. That's the allowance you can get back if you have a soakaway etc.

In our case, they're charging us all SWD when 4 flats should be getting the £19 allowance - but they won't give it as we have a "shared roof".

So, that's an extra £76 per year (4 flats without roofs) being creamed off for Wessex Water, which does seem unfair to me.

How many blocks of flats are there in this Country?

These companies are making vast sums from this.

Paul

Cardew

Of course it is a stupid rule - more so if you lived in a 20 storey block of flats. You should read this thread where someone else raised this issue(and called it fraud:
https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/3184984

Without being unkind, by calling the practice fraud you are demonstrating that you have no idea how the water companies are financed.

Firstly as stated above, it was mandated by the Government(of Maggie) when water was privatised that the 'default' position would be that properties would be charged for SWD(Surface Water Drainage). As an aside it is not easy without investigations to establish if propereties have soakaways - even owners can't easily find out - and it just wouldn't be possible for water companies to inspect 20 million properties in UK.

More importantly, it doesn't matter a jot in financial terms to water companies if they charge for SWD or not. The company's income and profit is controlled by the Regulator. i.e. they are allowed to make £x million profit. So if, say, they raised £1 million less from SWD, they would be allowed to increase other charges by £1 million to compensate.

So to accuse them of 'fraud' or even 'sharp practice' is well wide of the mark. As they have a monopoly in their district they are in a win/win situation without having to resort to such tactics

Of course the whole business of charging for SWD is a nonsense. For instance why should all occupants in a 10 storey block of flats pay SWD!! However that is a Government problem to grasp.

The important point that so many people fail to understand is that the(stupid) charging method was laid down by the Government and is enforced by the Regulator.

Even more important, and difficult for people to grasp, is that it just doesn't matter if you, or all 20 people in a 20 storey block , pay for SWD or not. They are allowed to raise £x million in revenue and make £y million profit on that revenue. If they stopped charging any property for SWD they would simply be allowed to increase other charges to compensate.

Gothicfairy

Also by charging each flat as a domestic property it saves charging the owner/ council etc as a commerical property and the problem with that is that as people buy their own flats they then can't pay as part of the bulk charge.
Also it means that the owner /council are not paying for empty units which they would be doing if they were charged as a whole.

not saying I agree or don't but I can see the problems from both sides and as Cardew said..there is no extra profit for the water company either way

ajbennett

I can't believe that Wessex only charge £19 a year. I am currently paying £66 through United Utilities!!!

it is a real bone of contention with me.
A quick scan of my bill shows that I pay approx £47/year for water (not counting waste water & standing charges) as I use 34m cubed of water a year (although this figure was averaged & included a 3 month period when a friend was staying & showering everyday) ...so £47 for water & £66 for the SWD - great! And the SWD was £70 2 years ago!!
Can I really do nothing about this?
I know if I installed water butts at every drainpipe I may get a 50% reduction, but I would also have to prove no water from anywhere else on my property goes to the mains sewer...can I do that???? Maybe I will have to befriend a mole....

27col

Water butts would not help, once they are full the extra water still goes into the drains, so you would still liable. If, on the other hand, you channelled the rain water into soak-aways then you would get the reduction.