Water leak - Yorkshire Water

Peter999_2

Hi all.    I've received a phone call on my way home from work from Yorkshire Water.   They are saying that I am using a hell of a lot of water and they think that I've got a leak.

They are saying that my water bill since November is £680.  I didn't ask her how much a day is being used.

She put me through to another person to arranged a visit from an engineer, but they are saying they cannot come out until 9th April.     I tried to complain about this but they transferred me to a message saying they are now closed so I'll have to phone back tomorrow.

I have found the water meter which is on the driveway.    It has a communication device attached to it so I presume it reads the meter automatically (it has a 433mhz sticker on it).

I have turned off the stop !!!!!! in my house and checked the meter which is still going round.   Does this mean that because it's after the meter then it is my responsibilty to fix it?   

Just a bit worried as I only moved in in November and am dreading a very large bill.

Any advice would be appreciated.

Ms_Chocaholic

Hello

I'm not clear on what you are describing but any pipes on your property are your responsibility, the Water Board's responsibility ends at the pavement.  You can claim for loss of water from either the Water Board or through your insurance.  If the pipe that is leaking is under your driveway/garden then you can get a new supply put in, how old is your house, is it yours or do you rent?  Can you hear any running water.

We had a similar problem with a leaking water pipe under the house, we turned the water off at the stopcock in the pavement and then put it on for 5 mins a day, filled the bath to use to flush the toilet, filled pans downstairs and we each had a shower.  Managed like that for a few weeks until we got it fixed. 

I will PM you with more information.

Ms Choc

Peter999_2

Thanks, I appreciate that.

At the moment, all I know is that the water meter is still spinning round when I turn off the stop !!!!!! in the house.    I'll have to turn the one off at the meter and do what you suggest (it is a good idea).

I cannot hear any water at all anywhere.   There is a bit of water at the meter, but I don't know if that is normal or not.     Fortunately, I have friends very near me and I have keys to their house and they will be happy for me to go round to the toilet/shower.   I'll turn it off tomorrow morning and make sure the meter does stop.

Thanks again for replying.

Ms_Chocaholic

Peter999_2 said:

Thanks, I appreciate that.

At the moment, all I know is that the water meter is still spinning round when I turn off the stop !!!!!! in the house.    I'll have to turn the one off at the meter and do what you suggest (it is a good idea).

I cannot hear any water at all anywhere.   There is a bit of water at the meter, but I don't know if that is normal or not.     Fortunately, I have friends very near me and I have keys to their house and they will be happy for me to go round to the toilet/shower.   I'll turn it off tomorrow morning and make sure the meter does stop.

Thanks again for replying.

I've also sent you some useful information via private message. If you're unsure how to access that give me a shout.

Ms_Chocaholic

Oh just to add, our home insurance didn't cover us as they classed it as wear and tear (to the pipe) which wasn't covered.

Peter999_2

Thanks very much for that.     From checking my home insurance it does say the same as yours that they will only cover it if it is accidental damage and not wear and tear.       The house is only about 25 years old so I'm hoping that it will have been built in a way it is easier to fix - though knowing my luck  ...

Edited to add - just noticed you mentioned if I rent or own, I own the house.

Peter999_2

Just to update the thread.   I spoke to the water company this morning to try and get the 9th April date brought forward as I don't want it going on for a month.

I spoke to them at 9am and they said they'd get back to me within two hours.  Exactly two hours later they did phone back (I appreciate it when people do actually phone you back when they say they will).

Initially they brought forward the appointment to monday but I pushed a little and they have agreed to come out tomorrow afternoon instead so that's good.      There is a drain in the driveway so presumably the pipes don't actually go under the house?

Hopefully I'll know tomorrow.     The person who called also confirmed that I won't be charged for the lost water and they will just work out what I would normally use so that's good.

Peter999_2

Just thought I'd update and finish off this thread (I hate reading threads where you don't get a resolution).

The Yorkshire Water people came, spent 30 minutes just looking at the smart meter and said yes, there was a leak.   I guess they just make sure that the customer isn't doing anything daft and that there is actually a leak.

They said I was eligible for a free repair so passed it to a third party serivces company.   They couldn't come until 8th April so I phoned a water leak company and arranged for them to visit on Thursday (thanks a lot to Ms_Chocaholic for her advice to make sure I got a WIAPS registered company).

Then, this morning I got a call from the third party services company to say they were in the area and could be there in an hour and a half.    I rushed home.       They dug up a bit of the drive (the bit just has gravel on it and is next to my flagstones which thankfully they didn't have to get up).    They immediately found the leak and have fixed it (took about 2 hours).   After chatting to them, it became apparant that they knew my street really well as the same thing had happened to 6 houses down the street in the last year.  They said that it is the fittings used when building the houses (29 years ago) and they are all starting to fail.

In all, I was really pleased with them and it didn't cost me anything (except coke and biscuits).