help...water bill is £4000 a year.

finlander

my thought to.... I said that to essex and suffolk and again... you guessed it..'not our problem'.... thats why Im depressed about it... they basically say.. 'its gone through your meter... you can pay'.......

blue_monkey_2

finlander wrote: »

I dont think they can... Im not being obtuse but I work in this area and its a need to know thing. If details are released they eventually get lost and can end up in the wrong hands. Anglians arguement, again quite rightly I feel, was that that consumption is completely ridiculous and that essex and suffock can request the info (because they are vetted) but even if it is not the pumping station the meter should be removed if the consumption cant be traced.

sounds sensible but essex and suffolk dont think so.......

Well I think you should give it a try, my MP managed to get loads of information for me that I would not have been able to get otherwise - they said the same thing but he got it. Their job is to help their consituents when they have met a dead end with everything else. I'd make them your next move as soon as. Do you know who yours is? I am pretty sure he would be able to get this sorted for you - and because you have gone through him it has to be sorted within a certain amount of time, no fobbing off with 'not my problem' then, you are making it their problem!!

Your MP will no doubt say that this spike is ridiculous for a household and would be privvy to more information than you would and is able to go right to the top to do so and not have to deal with customer service people at the end of the phone. Please do not disregard doing this, you will be surprised just what they can get done - and how quickly too!

Gothicfairy

finlander wrote: »

thanks for that.. a bit of helpful thinking at last... At last ?? Hardly , you were told to write and complain, you were told to go to OFWAT and CCW which is the correct way of doing things before dragging anyone else into it but I guess you didn't want that sort of help, shame you didn't say so before as I wouldn't have wasted my time asking where the meter was (which you never replied to) what kind of meter it was (which you never replied to) etc etc

Gothicfairy says it ist going to be the pumping station, which is pretty impressive as anglian water who own it arnt sure . I didn't say it wasn't..I said it doesn't sound like it is..Totally different thing but don't let a few words get in the way of a good rant. They will know where the pipe work is going but might well just not tell you. If you have only ever called and complained you will NOT get the correct answers anyway as the phone staff do not use systems like GISST etc It is far more likely that the supply is attached to something private and that would explain why they don't know.

I have also already enquired from essex and suffolk what would happen if i managed to catch another spike and they said 'nothing' as their response would be that I had left a tap on again!!

Im really stuck here and I cant afford it anymore....:(

I have nothing more to add really..You never did say if you have complained in writing to the water company though and I do wonder if not why not as surely that would be the best step ?

Timman

I am going to regret admitting this :-) I am a water engineer but thankfully not for the company you're with.

Standard average consumption varies (and I will check our numbers) but off the top of my head its 145 litres per head per day. So two people should use 290 litres in one day. Not 14,000.

CCW (Consumer Council for Water) are very good. I've been on the receiving end of dealing with complaints and when you get a letter from them you jump and quick.

Sorry for asking the obvious but what are they charging you per cubic meter of water used (not the sewerage charge) - just in case you are on a commercial tarriff and not a residential one. Sorry if you've explained this in an earlier post.

It is a very strange issue you have. I will catch up with one of our clean water operations guys over the next few days and see if they've ever experienced something like this and what the fault could be. Can't promise an answer though but will try.

allybee101

Sorry Finlander, I was trying to say that 14000 l in 2 hours was a lot, let alone a day!

Where exactly is your water meter? And where was the meter that they supplied for a month?
If their meter was 500 yds down the road at an inspection cover then as Tim mentions a branch from the same pipe might be coming off between the meter and your property and going somewhere else.
How about requesting that E&S put in another meter at the point leading into your property, (somewhere near your main stop tap?) where there is no risk of other supplies being accidentally included.

The water companies are careful with their water treatment (drinking water) assets for security reasons, sewage treatment assets less so. A pumping station is in the second category.

Could you contact Anglian Water and ask them to confirm if any works took place on the 9th June (rather than asking for the full set of records). There is no reason why they can't tell you this. It's not like you're asking for detailed blueprints.

Make sure you're keeping records of all conversations etc, and perhaps write a letter detailing all of this, copying the C.E.O/M.D of S&E Water in and advise them that you will be contacting OfWat too. Maybe that will help move things along.

If you work in the 'water' industry/area have you looked on DigDat for more information? It might give you an idea of local pipework infrastructure. Very helpful website/GIS but generally limited to local authorities/utility companies for access (I have access through my job). I think that S&E Water use AW's infrastructure for some of their supply.
Alternatively you can usually request an asset map from the water company for a small charge (often used for building work to check where services run).

buglawton

So, your meter is smart enough to have recorded that a spike occurred. To know this it must have logged a detailed set of records, daily at least. Pity it's not smart enough to sound an alarm once such an amount is flowing!

Gothicfairy

This has been going on for 4 years though so it is not just this one time...Did you ask for a full statement of accounts ?

phototest

Many years ago I had a leak deep underneath the ground and had to spend thousands on water. A plumber came sending a radiosignal down the waterpipe and followed it until he found where it spread. It took less than an hour to find the leak.

The problem is that leaks on your land (after the meter) are your problem, not the water company's. Reason why water companies sell insurance against that problem.

As a first step, ask to get access to the water meter. If you both are still working note the water meter when leaving the house note the meter and check when coming back before you use any water to see how much it has changed.

Fred_Bear_2

Hi finlander.

Your annual bill of £4000 means you are being charged for an average of 6000 litres per day. That's 40 times as much as we use! Why don't you install your own meter (they are quite inexpensive) inside your house which you can read as often as you like. This will prove whether there are any leaks or you are leaving a tap on. (I know you aren't.) If your meter readings are different from the meter in the street then there must be a branch going somewhere else.

finlander

Gothicfairy wrote: »

I have nothing more to add really..You never did say if you have complained in writing to the water company though and I do wonder if not why not as surely that would be the best step ?

Im not really interested in explaining anything more to you Im afraid. Im sorry you feel it was a rant but I get that way when people make judgements about me based on very little knowledge. other people on this thread have come up with some useful advice without making outlandish statements about my situation.