South Staffs Water didn't even read my mums meter for her bills

p00hsticks

MoneyMon555 said:

la531983 said:

Are you 100% sure they haven't read it?
No actual reading on the bill?
Nobody has "read" my meter for years, its sent to a passing vehicle via radio signal.

I didnt know about that, thanks. All I know is , that the bill was exactly the same every month, and I cant recall seeing anything mentioning 'reading' numbers

I very much doubt that she recieved a 'bill' every month. Far more likely is that she got a bill six monthly and paid a fixed sum by Direct Debit monthly, the amount of which would be adjusted annually if she had been observed to be under or over paying for the water used at the point she was billed. . 

MoneyMon555

sammyjammy said:

MoneyMon555 said:

la531983 said:

Are you 100% sure they haven't read it?
No actual reading on the bill?
Nobody has "read" my meter for years, its sent to a passing vehicle via radio signal.

I didnt know about that, thanks. All I know is , that the bill was exactly the same every month, and I cant recall seeing anything mentioning 'reading' numbers

Thats how it works, they bill annually and you pay over 12 months, the bill doesn't change on a monthly basis.  They then adjust the payment for next year up or down as required.

Ah, I see, I think maybe I misunderstood the whole billing system then, thanks

dunstonh

When I contacted South Staffs Water about change of bill payer , they asked for a reading (that's how I found that she had a meter). It was dirty and dusty that it was clear to me that no one could have read the meter for years.

I read my meter every 6 months and each time I open the lid, the display is coated with dirt.   I had to dig out the tap the other day as it was buried.

So, don't assume dirt doesn't accumulate quickly.

When I asked them, they said that they aim to get someone out once a year to read the meter but just base the usage on previous usage before the meter...

The bills would indicate if an estimate has been used.    Some meters don't need a manual read as they transmit the reading electronically to the passing van.