Can I reclaim overcharged water bills from the past?

Jupiter_rising_6270

Hi,

I'm a single guy living in a 1 bed flat in London and I've lived here for 8 years now. Only recently did it come to my attention that I may have been overpaying my (unmetered) water bill each month when someone said their monthly bill was less than mine and there were 4x people in their property!

I did the online calculator (which I got from MSE - thanks!) and where I've been paying £406 per year as fixed monthly charges and the calculator estimates I should be paying around £136 per year based on my usage and if I had a water meter installed.

Great news - £270 per year back in the bank thanks @Martin_lewis_2
Not to be greedy... but my question is... is that back-datable somehow or would they consider a lower rate for my previous bills as it seems I've paid somewhere in the region of £2,160 since I moved into my flat??

Thanks anyone who might know!!
Cheers,
Michael from Hampton Hill

QrizB

Sorry, I don't think it's back-dateable. They'll say you could have chosen a water meter at any time during the past 8 years and it's your problem if you didn't.

Cardew

The position stated in the post above is that taken by Ofwat.

Free meters have been available for 30 years, so you haven't been 'overpaying' you have elected(by default) for a more expensive system.