Thames Water in danger of collapsing: Should I pay my water bill now - or wait?

CalvinHobs

I received my six-monthly water bill from Thames Water a couple of days ago. I was about to pay it when I discover they are £14 billion in debt and may be put into a "special administration regime". This is Whitehall-speak for re-nationalising TW.

Ministers weigh contingency plan for collapse of Thames Water - Sky News

My bill is £150 so paying it now is unlikely to prevent them from going bust - it's a drop in the ocean compared to £14bn. I am not trying to avoid paying my water bill. However, if I pay it now and TW collapses - is there a risk that the money leaves my account but my bill is not recorded as having been paid? Would it be better to wait until this is resolved, i.e. TW stay in business - or the govt takes them over?

cymruchris

Pay your bill as normal. Don't get into the territory of having late markers against your credit file for not paying by an agreed date. Whatever happens with them, you'll have your proof of an on-time outgoing payment, and one way or another things will work out. They aren't some backstreet company who if they go belly-up will likely lose everyone's details and payments.

MattMattMattUK

CalvinHobs said:

I received my six-monthly water bill from Thames Water a couple of days ago. I was about to pay it when I discover they are £14 billion in debt and may be put into a "special administration regime". This is Whitehall-speak for re-nationalising TW.

Ministers weigh contingency plan for collapse of Thames Water - Sky News

My bill is £150 so paying it now is unlikely to prevent them from going bust - it's a drop in the ocean compared to £14bn. I am not trying to avoid paying my water bill. However, if I pay it now and TW collapses - is there a risk that the money leaves my account but my bill is not recorded as having been paid? Would it be better to wait until this is resolved, i.e. TW stay in business - or the govt takes them over?

You pay your bill now. For all the customers of Thames Water everything will carry on as normal with no changes. They are not going to collapse, they may be insolvent, but that does not mean that their operations cease. 

GingerTim

You should only be concerned if your pension scheme, like mine, has a 20% holding in Thames Water 🥲

CalvinHobs

Thank-you for your responses.

Follow-up:

When my water bill arrived every six months, I would think "Hmm, not much more than last time" and then pay it. Thames Water being in the news prompted me to take a closer look at my water bills...

Looking through my bills, I realised my last 8 water bills were estimated - the last bill based on a meter reading was mid-2019. The water meter is in the road outside the front of my place so it's not as if the meter-reading person couldn't find it. TW say they take meter readings at least once every 2 years so maybe they have been skimping on reading meters to cut costs?

I decided to take a meter-reading myself, in spite of my iffy knees and dodgy back. When I prised off the "lid", I found the hole was full of water. Presumably rainwater as the lid has no rubber seal. Once I got rid of the water, I could read the meter. It turns out the actual meter reading is lower than the estimate on my latest bill.

Today, I registered an online account with TW and submitted my reading. They emailed me a revised bill which is less than half of the original bill. I set up a direct debit starting next month which covers both the revised bill and the next 2 bills: £30 pcm for the next 12 months seems pretty reasonable to me.

TL/DR: I should have set up a direct debit for my water bill years ago.

matelodave

If you've got a water meter then its always a good idea check it yourself and make sure that the bills do actually reflect the meter readings and not a guesstimate

It also helps you understand your water consumption enabling you to reduce consumption and will highlight any anomalies - like leaks.

By checking my meter regularly I discovered a leak that lost some 40cu.m in just one month, which saved both the cost of lost water (£200)  and the driveway collapsing if it had gone on much longer.

cymruchris

An update just posted to the BBC to say everything will carry on as normal:

Thames Water: Customers' bills will not be affected, says minister https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-66050962