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Water Bill

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  • shoresybulldog
    shoresybulldog Posts: 8 Forumite
    First Post
    mmmmikey said:
    Hi guys. Joined the MSE forum because I have a question about my recent water bill and wanted to get some advice. It’s a bit long but wanted to include as much detail as possible. 
    My bills are 6 monthly and I get an actual reading in May and estimated in November. I have just had my May bill and whilst I expected an increase in my DD due to the recent increase in charges, I noticed it had gone up by £30 a month. When I checked my usage it showed my usual water usage had doubled. 
    I have gone through all my statements since May 2020 and I have never used more than 88m3 of water in a 6 month period (88m3 was 3 years ago). Most bills are around 65-70 every 6 months. When working out between a May and May where my actual readings are done across the last 5 years, I used around 130m3 approx. My usage between November and May is 127m3 so it’s basically doubled. With every bill, I’m charged around £200-£220 for 6 months usage but my current bill for the same period was £410. Both my partner and I were both a bit shocked because we haven’t changed any habits. 
    Washing machine is on at least once a day, dishwasher about 3 times a week, 4 showers daily 2 adults 2 teenagers), rinsing plates in the sink and using, boiler in the winter and sinks and toilets etc. This is nothing new and doing this is usually around our normal water usage of 65m3 across 6 months. Only thing I have done different is jet wash the patio last month. 
    I’ve checked my meter and it’s not spinning when all the water is off, when I use water, it’s spinning suggesting it’s working correctly. Meter reading is correct. Boiler doesn’t lose pressure and I’ve checked all the taps and pipes for leaks and cannot see anything. I’ve checked the toilet is not overflowing and whilst there is the tiniest of dribbles coming from the tank into the bowl (it’s really slow and ridiculously small), there is absolutely no way this would equate to same the amount of water I use in a day using my appliances and showers etc thus doubling my usage. I went out Sunday and checked my meter and came back 3 hours later and the reading was exactly how I left it when I came back. Hadnt moved a millimetre so I know the meter isnt moving when nothing is being used (including toilet). I have called south staffs water who said they don’t have any raw data to see spikes but admitted the spike was unusual so have requested an engineer just to rule out any issues or leaks etc. I’m fine with paying it but it doesn’t sit right that it’s doubled with no change in habits and even SSW saying it is also unusual based on previous bill history. Is there anybody that has had a the same issue and what they did or any other possible causes. Thanks in advance. 
    It does sound as if you have a leak. Looking at the meter not spinning when not using water is not really enough unless the leak was substantial. What you need to do first is check the meter over a period of several hours when no water has been used, so say when you are out of the house for a day so there is a twelve hour period that can be checked against, even three hours might not be enough.

    The next thing to do is ideally try and take daily reads for a couple of weeks, to see if there are any random spikes in usage that could indicate something, eg. the dishwasher has a problem that means instead of using 40 litres of water it now uses 100 litres per cycle. There might be something that only gets stuck occasionally, so the toilet getting stuck flowing sometimes but not all the time. 

    If all that fails then you might need to check a known volume of usage against what is recorded on the meter. 
    So I left it last night. Did a reading at 11:45 last night. It’s now 8am so a good 8 hours I left it and meter reading is the same. Nothing has moved. All in the exact same position definitely not using water when im not supposed to be 

    I'd be surprised if it's wrong but for completeness might be worth checking the accuracy of the meter, which you can do easily enough by running 10litres of water into a bucket and taking before / after readings. The more you run off the more accurate your test will be, but even 10 litres should be enough to give you a reasonable indication.
    South staffs asked me to do the consumption test and said if it remains still then unlikely anything wrong but said as the meter is 30 years old, they will send engineer out to make sure it’s working correctly and not moving quicker than it should ie saying I’m using 2 instead of 1 for example. I spoke to a friend last night who lives a mile down the road and I was telling her I couldnt say hi to her yesterday as I was on the phone to south staffs and she instantly said “of so you got the double bill as well then”. Just making me think something is up. Checked their Twitter feed and few people complaining about same thing so I just want to rule out everything. I’m happy to pay it especially if I had used but just want rule out any possible errors. Everyone I spoke to at SSW has said the same thing that it doesn’t look right and it’s unusual. 
  • dunstonh
    dunstonh Posts: 119,712 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 10,000 Posts Name Dropper Combo Breaker
    mmmmikey said:
    Hi guys. Joined the MSE forum because I have a question about my recent water bill and wanted to get some advice. It’s a bit long but wanted to include as much detail as possible. 
    My bills are 6 monthly and I get an actual reading in May and estimated in November. I have just had my May bill and whilst I expected an increase in my DD due to the recent increase in charges, I noticed it had gone up by £30 a month. When I checked my usage it showed my usual water usage had doubled. 
    I have gone through all my statements since May 2020 and I have never used more than 88m3 of water in a 6 month period (88m3 was 3 years ago). Most bills are around 65-70 every 6 months. When working out between a May and May where my actual readings are done across the last 5 years, I used around 130m3 approx. My usage between November and May is 127m3 so it’s basically doubled. With every bill, I’m charged around £200-£220 for 6 months usage but my current bill for the same period was £410. Both my partner and I were both a bit shocked because we haven’t changed any habits. 
    Washing machine is on at least once a day, dishwasher about 3 times a week, 4 showers daily 2 adults 2 teenagers), rinsing plates in the sink and using, boiler in the winter and sinks and toilets etc. This is nothing new and doing this is usually around our normal water usage of 65m3 across 6 months. Only thing I have done different is jet wash the patio last month. 
    I’ve checked my meter and it’s not spinning when all the water is off, when I use water, it’s spinning suggesting it’s working correctly. Meter reading is correct. Boiler doesn’t lose pressure and I’ve checked all the taps and pipes for leaks and cannot see anything. I’ve checked the toilet is not overflowing and whilst there is the tiniest of dribbles coming from the tank into the bowl (it’s really slow and ridiculously small), there is absolutely no way this would equate to same the amount of water I use in a day using my appliances and showers etc thus doubling my usage. I went out Sunday and checked my meter and came back 3 hours later and the reading was exactly how I left it when I came back. Hadnt moved a millimetre so I know the meter isnt moving when nothing is being used (including toilet). I have called south staffs water who said they don’t have any raw data to see spikes but admitted the spike was unusual so have requested an engineer just to rule out any issues or leaks etc. I’m fine with paying it but it doesn’t sit right that it’s doubled with no change in habits and even SSW saying it is also unusual based on previous bill history. Is there anybody that has had a the same issue and what they did or any other possible causes. Thanks in advance. 
    It does sound as if you have a leak. Looking at the meter not spinning when not using water is not really enough unless the leak was substantial. What you need to do first is check the meter over a period of several hours when no water has been used, so say when you are out of the house for a day so there is a twelve hour period that can be checked against, even three hours might not be enough.

    The next thing to do is ideally try and take daily reads for a couple of weeks, to see if there are any random spikes in usage that could indicate something, eg. the dishwasher has a problem that means instead of using 40 litres of water it now uses 100 litres per cycle. There might be something that only gets stuck occasionally, so the toilet getting stuck flowing sometimes but not all the time. 

    If all that fails then you might need to check a known volume of usage against what is recorded on the meter. 
    So I left it last night. Did a reading at 11:45 last night. It’s now 8am so a good 8 hours I left it and meter reading is the same. Nothing has moved. All in the exact same position definitely not using water when im not supposed to be 

    I'd be surprised if it's wrong but for completeness might be worth checking the accuracy of the meter, which you can do easily enough by running 10litres of water into a bucket and taking before / after readings. The more you run off the more accurate your test will be, but even 10 litres should be enough to give you a reasonable indication.
    South staffs asked me to do the consumption test and said if it remains still then unlikely anything wrong but said as the meter is 30 years old, they will send engineer out to make sure it’s working correctly and not moving quicker than it should ie saying I’m using 2 instead of 1 for example. I spoke to a friend last night who lives a mile down the road and I was telling her I couldnt say hi to her yesterday as I was on the phone to south staffs and she instantly said “of so you got the double bill as well then”. Just making me think something is up. Checked their Twitter feed and few people complaining about same thing so I just want to rule out everything. I’m happy to pay it especially if I had used but just want rule out any possible errors. Everyone I spoke to at SSW has said the same thing that it doesn’t look right and it’s unusual. 
    Are their increases due to the Government £50 contribution being removed rather than metering changes?
    I am an Independent Financial Adviser (IFA). The comments I make are just my opinion and are for discussion purposes only. They are not financial advice and you should not treat them as such. If you feel an area discussed may be relevant to you, then please seek advice from an Independent Financial Adviser local to you.
  • shoresybulldog
    shoresybulldog Posts: 8 Forumite
    First Post
    Hi guys. Joined the MSE forum because I have a question about my recent water bill and wanted to get some advice. It’s a bit long but wanted to include as much detail as possible. 
    My bills are 6 monthly and I get an actual reading in May and estimated in November. I have just had my May bill and whilst I expected an increase in my DD due to the recent increase in charges, I noticed it had gone up by £30 a month. When I checked my usage it showed my usual water usage had doubled. 
    I have gone through all my statements since May 2020 and I have never used more than 88m3 of water in a 6 month period (88m3 was 3 years ago). Most bills are around 65-70 every 6 months. When working out between a May and May where my actual readings are done across the last 5 years, I used around 130m3 approx. My usage between November and May is 127m3 so it’s basically doubled. With every bill, I’m charged around £200-£220 for 6 months usage but my current bill for the same period was £410. Both my partner and I were both a bit shocked because we haven’t changed any habits. 
    Washing machine is on at least once a day, dishwasher about 3 times a week, 4 showers daily 2 adults 2 teenagers), rinsing plates in the sink and using, boiler in the winter and sinks and toilets etc. This is nothing new and doing this is usually around our normal water usage of 65m3 across 6 months. Only thing I have done different is jet wash the patio last month. 
    I’ve checked my meter and it’s not spinning when all the water is off, when I use water, it’s spinning suggesting it’s working correctly. Meter reading is correct. Boiler doesn’t lose pressure and I’ve checked all the taps and pipes for leaks and cannot see anything. I’ve checked the toilet is not overflowing and whilst there is the tiniest of dribbles coming from the tank into the bowl (it’s really slow and ridiculously small), there is absolutely no way this would equate to same the amount of water I use in a day using my appliances and showers etc thus doubling my usage. I went out Sunday and checked my meter and came back 3 hours later and the reading was exactly how I left it when I came back. Hadnt moved a millimetre so I know the meter isnt moving when nothing is being used (including toilet). I have called south staffs water who said they don’t have any raw data to see spikes but admitted the spike was unusual so have requested an engineer just to rule out any issues or leaks etc. I’m fine with paying it but it doesn’t sit right that it’s doubled with no change in habits and even SSW saying it is also unusual based on previous bill history. Is there anybody that has had a the same issue and what they did or any other possible causes. Thanks in advance. 
    It does sound as if you have a leak. Looking at the meter not spinning when not using water is not really enough unless the leak was substantial. What you need to do first is check the meter over a period of several hours when no water has been used, so say when you are out of the house for a day so there is a twelve hour period that can be checked against, even three hours might not be enough.

    The next thing to do is ideally try and take daily reads for a couple of weeks, to see if there are any random spikes in usage that could indicate something, eg. the dishwasher has a problem that means instead of using 40 litres of water it now uses 100 litres per cycle. There might be something that only gets stuck occasionally, so the toilet getting stuck flowing sometimes but not all the time. 

    If all that fails then you might need to check a known volume of usage against what is recorded on the meter. 
    Hey. Just to update you. They have changed the water meter and estimated my final bill on previous history which meant it come right back down and bill is back at an acceptable level. The estimated final reading has been marked on as an actual reading on my final bill on the old meter so back in credit and new meter to boot. So good news all round in the end. 
  • matelodave
    matelodave Posts: 9,083 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 1,000 Posts Name Dropper Photogenic
    Good result - thanks for coming back and telling us how it was resolved
    Never under estimate the power of stupid people in large numbers
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