Huge Thames water bill rises 2025/2026 50% + for some

smallgreen

MattMattMattUK said:

Yes, rates are increasing more for rateable customers than metered customers. You will almost certainly save money by having them install a water meter. 

I am on an assessed rate as they determined that it wasn't possible to fit a meter at my address. I've just recieved my bill for next year. It has gone up by 49%! 

They can't really increase my bill over the OFWAT determination for price increases can they? I have no ability to fit a meter when they have said it impossible. Why would the OFWAT cap not apply to me, I don't understand.

TroubledTarts

Those without meters to be honest you will have had cheap, endless water for many many years.

It just brings you up to the level of the average water user yet you still have the option to waste as much as you like. Rather than if it's yellow let it mellow 

smallgreen

TroubledTarts said:

Those without meters to be honest you will have had cheap, endless water for many many years.

Well thats a lot of assumptions you just made. 

I've always been a let it mellow person from before meters were even a thing. I also requested the meter at my current place, because I'm pretty sure I use less than the assessed rate. Its a very new thing for me to not have a meter and I have not found the assessed rate to be a discount so far.

So I'm rather upset that I seem to be being penalised for something I have no control over. I'm also a little surprised at the rather divisive attitude here of meter users vs those that can't have meters. 

I was just looking for a little help understanding how Thames Water was able to rise my bill above the publicised rate cap. Thanks

I_luv_cats

smallgreen said:

MattMattMattUK said:

Yes, rates are increasing more for rateable customers than metered customers. You will almost certainly save money by having them install a water meter. 

I am on an assessed rate as they determined that it wasn't possible to fit a meter at my address. I've just recieved my bill for next year. It has gone up by 49%! 

They can't really increase my bill over the OFWAT determination for price increases can they? I have no ability to fit a meter when they have said it impossible. Why would the OFWAT cap not apply to me, I don't understand.

Apparently, this is the explanation (if anybody can make sense) why AHC has risen:-

As flagged to Consumer Council for Water a number of years ago, the Per Capita Consumption (“PCC”) metric is not a suitable benchmark for the underlying volume that drives the single occupier Assessed Household Charge tariff due to the ‘fixed/base’ usage that was discussed previously. The PCC calculation will spread the ‘fixed/base’ usage that does not differ with the number of occupants across the entirety of the unmeasured customer population. However, when you are looking specifically at single occupier usage, this ‘fixed/base’ usage is wholly attributable to the one occupant.

As such, you would expect companies to have an underlying assessed volume for the single occupier Assessed Household Charge tariff that is materially higher than the level of the PCC metric.

To clarify on the nature of the customer base included in the Domestic Water Use Study (DWUS), these customers are, from a revenue and billing perspective, wholly unmeasured i.e. they are not ‘choosing’ to continue to be billed based on their Rateable Value as the meters installed are dummy (or “non-revenue”) meters, hence these customers can’t currently be charged on a metered tariff. The customers included in the study are proactively opted in, so the extent to which the study reflects the true composition of our Assessed Household Charge customer base is determined by the customers that have put themselves forward to be a part of the study. Thames Water do not forcibly add customers to the study.

As mentioned previously, the Domestic Water Use Study splits customers down by their property type. The current split by property type on a 5-year average basis can be seen below.

Table 1: DWUS property splits

Our assessed volumes for the Assessed Household Charge tariff have historically been derived solely from the ‘Large Block of Flats’ category within the Domestic Water Use Study. The latest view, by property type, of assessed volumes for single occupiers can be seen below. This shows that our current variable charge for the single occupier tariff is in fact slightly below the level seen in the DWUS for a single occupier within a large block of flats. 

Table 2: DWUS single occupier usage volumes by property type

Whilst we appreciate that the fixed charge essentially makes it appear that the usage of a single occupier is c. 12m3 per annum more than the table above implies, the ongoing review of assessed volumes for the Assessed Household Charge tariff mentioned previously is looking to better reflect the entirety of the current Assessed Household Charge customer base which now includes many houses as well as flats. The final row of the table above shows what the single occupier assessed volume is when the customer base covers all property types rather than just ‘Large Blocks of Flats’. On this basis, the single occupier assessed volume would justifiably be even higher at around 93m3 per annum.

One final related point to reiterate is that the Assessed Household Charge tariffs, for the sake of simplicity and practicality, are set as a single averaged charge for each band that will apply to the full range of customers that qualify for that band. This is common practice across the water industry. For the single occupier tariff, this should mean that the assessed usage volume is averaged across data from single occupiers in detached, semi-detached and terraced houses as well as those in flats. As such, some customers will inevitably use more water in reality than the assessed volume for their given band, whilst others will use less.

smallgreen

I_luv_cats said:

Apparently, this is the explanation (if anybody can make sense) why AHC has risen:-

What is the source of that?

I_luv_cats

smallgreen said:

I_luv_cats said:

Apparently, this is the explanation (if anybody can make sense) why AHC has risen:-

What is the source of that?

Thames Water Customer Service

(great timing along with Ofwat agreed rises, gord knows how will scalp-us in next 4years+)

smallgreen

I_luv_cats said:

Thames Water Customer Service

Thanks. But is there a way I can see the original document you are quoting. Can you link, or tell me what site, the document name or a search term?

The text you quote references "the Per Capita Consumption (“PCC”) metric is not a suitable benchmark for the underlying volume that drives the single occupier Assessed Household Charge tariff" from earlier in the document. And there are tables referenced that are not displayed. Makes it very hard to figure out. Plus, what is this document, who wrote it, for what purpose?

I_luv_cats

smallgreen said:

I_luv_cats said:

Thames Water Customer Service

Thanks. But is there a way I can see the original document you are quoting. Can you link, or tell me what site, the document name or a search term?

The text you quote references "the Per Capita Consumption (“PCC”) metric is not a suitable benchmark for the underlying volume that drives the single occupier Assessed Household Charge tariff" from earlier in the document. And there are tables referenced that are not displayed. Makes it very hard to figure out. Plus, what is this document, who wrote it, for what purpose?

I queried the above 31% rise and they emailed me the text (the tabled images aren't distinguishable) 

I_luv_cats

smallgreen said:

I_luv_cats said:

Thames Water Customer Service

Thanks. But is there a way I can see the original document you are quoting. Can you link, or tell me what site, the document name or a search term?

The text you quote references "the Per Capita Consumption (“PCC”) metric is not a suitable benchmark for the underlying volume that drives the single occupier Assessed Household Charge tariff" from earlier in the document. And there are tables referenced that are not displayed. Makes it very hard to figure out. Plus, what is this document, who wrote it, for what purpose?

there's something  here;-

https://www.thameswater.co.uk/media-library/home/help/billing-and-account/understand-your-bill/statement-of-significant-change-2025-26-charges-schemes.pdf

smallgreen

I see. This is about as clear as a Thames Water discharge.

Amazing that they thought this was a reasonable way to explain anything to a customer/non-layperson!