Water meter

Shawn_Dark

Can I get rid of my water meter?

I moved in to my own property but found out this week that I have a water meter. Northumbrian water said I cant have it removed.

zax47

You should ask in the Utilities>water section;

http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/forumdisplay.php?f=79

but the answer will be the same - NO.

Why remove it - you will probably save money over the old "one size fits all" rateable value water charge, especially if you have less house occupants than bedrooms and/or are out at work most days. We more than halved our bill by having a meter fitted, as have many hundreds of thousands (if not millions) of others. They already have to be fitted on change of ownership, wont be long until they are compulsory.

keystone

As above

Cheers

Shawn_Dark

zax47 wrote: »

You should ask in the Utilities>water section;

http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/forumdisplay.php?f=79

but the answer will be the same - NO.

Why remove it - you will probably save money over the old "one size fits all" rateable value water charge, especially if you have less house occupants than bedrooms and/or are out at work most days. We more than halved our bill by having a meter fitted, as have many hundreds of thousands (if not millions) of others. They already have to be fitted on change of ownership, wont be long until they are compulsory.

i was previously paying £29 a month. The adviser I spoke to said the average for myself (two adults, three children) is £40 a month. Hence, the desire to change.

keystone

Where were you previously living?

Did you have a meter before or were your bills based on RV? If RV how does the RV old your old property compare with that of the new one?

Were sewerage charges separate and extra to £ 29 and are they included in £40?

If you had meter before you know your exact usage. You can therefore calculate what you would expect to pay at the new place if there is any variation in the price per litre. Nothing rocket science about that and would give you a far better starting point than just rejecting an "average" quoted off the top of someones head.

Zax is correct - change of ownership invariably requires a meter these days whether you want one or not.

Cheers

Shawn_Dark

keystone wrote: »

Where were you previously living?

Did you have a meter before or were your bills based on RV? If RV how does the RV old your old property compare with that of the new one?

Were sewerage charges separate and extra to £ 29 and are they included in £40?

If you had meter before you know your exact usage. You can therefore calculate what you would expect to pay at the new place if there is any variation in the price per litre. Nothing rocket science about that and would give you a far better starting point than just rejecting an "average" quoted off the top of someones head.

Zax is correct - change of ownership invariably requires a meter these days whether you want one or not.

Cheers

That's okay then, its just that everyone i've spoken to so far seem to think that a water meter is expensive (like a gas or electricity meter) and only suit people with specific circumstances.

zax47

You should read this, on the main MSE site;

http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/utilities/cut-water-bills

It has links to water cost calculator;

http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/utilities/cut-water-bills#calculators

Here's the Northumbrian Water cost calculator page;

http://www.nwl.co.uk/your-home/your-account/usage-calculator.aspx

McKneff

You wouldnt be able to get the meter removed.

Just because you were paying £29 at your last place doesnt mean you would pay £29 where you are now.

Ask the Water Board how much you would be paying if you didnt have a meter. Then you'll see how much you save with a meter.

dorsetlady

I've had a meter for years and couldn't get it removed when I moved in. It certainly hasn't been cheaper for me - when I moved into my previous house the standing charge alone was as much as my previous water rates! So was paying more as soon as I used a drop. My present house has a meter - I'd love to get rid of it but can't as the house was built after the date which meters were fitted in all houses. It's so expensive even though I am so careful - we've had a lot of plumbing problems and have had to have the whole system drained several times - it's awful to see all of that expensive water running away!

I think it's very unfair to force some people to have a meter unless everyone is forced to. My mum (non-metered) pays a lot less than I do and uses LOTS more water than my family especially on her garden - I have to recycle the shower water to water mine!

Shawn_Dark

dorsetlady wrote: »

I've had a meter for years and couldn't get it removed when I moved in. It certainly hasn't been cheaper for me - when I moved into my previous house the standing charge alone was as much as my previous water rates! So was paying more as soon as I used a drop. My present house has a meter - I'd love to get rid of it but can't as the house was built after the date which meters were fitted in all houses. It's so expensive even though I am so careful - we've had a lot of plumbing problems and have had to have the whole system drained several times - it's awful to see all of that expensive water running away!

I think it's very unfair to force some people to have a meter unless everyone is forced to. My mum (non-metered) pays a lot less than I do and uses LOTS more water than my family especially on her garden - I have to recycle the shower water to water mine!

Case and point.

zax47

Abu_Yoosha wrote: »

Case and point.

And where is dorsetlady located - Dorset perhaps? With some of the most expense water charges in the country aside from Devon and Cornwall! I don't think you can draw any accurate inference from her comments about an unknown size of house with an unknown RV and totally different part of the country. Try asking your new neighbours instead.

You have to establish what the equivalent Rateable Value (RV) charge would have been for your new property before you can even begin to make a comparison - you cannot compare it to the £29/month RV charge at your old property!

It may be the RV charge at the new house would be £60/month, in which case the estimate of £40/month metered charges is cheaper - have you not understood this? Use one of the calculators we've linked to, to at least give you an idea - there's even the one there from your own water company.

I do not know anyone amongst my friends and family who has not saved by having a water meter, even a family with 5 kids under 18!!