Am I being overcharged?

smj43

I'm with Thames Water and I'm currently paying £38 per month fixed. I live in a house which has been converted into 2 seperate flats (mine is 2 bedrooms). My parents live literally around the corner in the same style of house, though they have the whole house (3 story, 4 bedrooms). They pay £39 a month.

It got me thinking. I recall when I initially rang Thames Water to set up my account, they had no record of seperate flats, just the whole house. I remember it took them a while to sort out, but they managed to edit the address manually. Is it possible that I'm being charged the bill for the entire house rather than just my flat? And if I am, would I be due a refund for the 6 months I've been overcharged?

Cardew

Presumably you are not metered?

When houses are converted into flats the developer often fails to notify the water company.

If converted prior to 1990 the 2 flats should each have been given a separate Rateable Value(RV) and that RV would determine annual charges.

If converted post 1990 both properties should have had a meter fitted. Indeed the planning permission(if applied for) would have stipulated that meters be fitted.

However there are many cases where this notification never happened and just one property pays water charges. Or in some(rare) cases both pay the same charges based on the original RV.

You need to ascertain if both flats are being charged, or just yourself.

If just yourself, then the water company have not overcharged - they have collected the revenue due on the building. It becomes a third party dispute between yourself and the other occupants - or landlord.

If you are metered, is your meter recording water used in other flat?

P.S.
What about gas/electricity and Council Tax?

smj43

Well I called Thames Water today and was told that it was correct. They say when I set up the account, they marked it as a conversion on their system. I told them about my parents paying only slightly more for their 4 bedroom house. She then told me that the water rates are based on the area I live in and that if I moved to a meter it would cost more? I'm not convinced, it felt like I was being fobbed off with no real explanation.

As for gas and electricity, I have my own meters for those. And my council tax is in the correct band too.

Cardew

£38 a month, but for how many months in the year? Some companies have the annual total in 8, 9 or 10 instalments.

Is the other flat paying water charges? Check.

If you were metered and used an average amount of water(60 cubic metres a year) a single person should not pay more than £160 pa for water and sewerage. Two people about £280. Charges here:

http://www.thameswater.co.uk/cps/rde/xbcr/corp/201213-metered-charges-leaflet.pdf

veni_vidi_vici

Can't believe it but just saved 60% off my bills by switching to a water meter. Severn Trent weren't at all proactive in flagging I could do this and I'm gutted at being overcharged for years. Think everyone should see how much they could save as sounds like if bills are higher you can switch back.:)

Gothicfairy

I am not sure how proactive you want them to be but every bill comes with the info about cutting the cost and applying for a meter, their site gives all the metered info you could want and their customer service reps will send out info or supply it over the phone if there is even a chance a customer might be interested or benefit.

Most of the staff I worked with or around would always offer options if a customer called to ask about their bills..


As for the RV of the op's place then a quick check on https://www.voa.gov.uk should show if the property is rated as one house or 2 flats.
If it is showing as a house then the owner is at fault and the water company will look to fit a meter anyway as the RV will no longer be valid.

macman

veni_vidi_vici wrote: »

Can't believe it but just saved 60% off my bills by switching to a water meter. Severn Trent weren't at all proactive in flagging I could do this and I'm gutted at being overcharged for years. Think everyone should see how much they could save as sounds like if bills are higher you can switch back.:)

You haven't been 'overcharged for years'.
You've presumably been charged at the correct rate for RV billing? You've failed to move to a cheaper way of billing entirely of your own choice. Why is that ST's fault?

Cardew

veni_vidi_vici wrote: »

Can't believe it but just saved 60% off my bills by switching to a water meter. Severn Trent weren't at all proactive in flagging I could do this and I'm gutted at being overcharged for years. Think everyone should see how much they could save as sounds like if bills are higher you can switch back.:)

Severn Trent's computer has no idea if your property is a 10 bed mansion with 12 occupants, or a 1 bed flat with a single occupant.

The RV system was so stupid that(exceptionally) the 1 bed flat could have a higher RV than the mansion, and hence have higher charges.