Water bill increase 100% for all neighbours.

Botafogo

Hi all

i am looking for advice to see if there is anything which may have caused this to happen other than the allowed increase in costs for water.

I have recently been told my water bill is increasing from £50 per month to £109.

i have always been in credit but I now apparently owe £140.

i was concerned about this and randomly my neighbour has said the same had happened to them.

turns out all 4 houses on our street have been told the same, all getting more than a 100% increase in our bills.

considering the average house price for water is apparently £40-£50 does this sound like a miscalculation by the water company (independent water networks) or is this just a sign of the times?

The_Unready

Are you on a water meter?

Botafogo

Yea this is a water meter. 

MattMattMattUK

Botafogo said:

Yea this is a water meter. 

The it will be based on usage. You can work out what your actual bills will be by multiplying your usage figures by the new unit rates and adding the standing charge. 

Hoenir

Botafogo said:

Yea this is a water meter. 

Then you are being charged for your usage. Previously what you were paying was not enough.  To correct the situaton you'll need to pay more to cover the accumulated arrears and the increased cost of ongoing supply. . 

Botafogo

We have been in the priory for 5 years and have always been in credit. The same with the neighbours.

it just seems strange that all of us have been hit with the same 100% increase at the same time without any change in behaviour/usage.

stripling

Hoenir said:

Botafogo said:

Yea this is a water meter. 

Then you are being charged for your usage. Previously what you were paying was not enough.  To correct the situaton you'll need to pay more to cover the accumulated arrears and the increased cost of ongoing supply. . 

That contradicts what the OP is saying.

@Botafogo  What it sounds like is a massive price increase - but that's if the your consumption has stayed roughly the same.  The best way forward is what @MattMattMattUK suggested. Compare unit rates and consumption figures between last year and this and take it from there.  

Bigphil1474

OP, you are confusing your bill with your direct debit payment. The DD is an estimate of what your water usage (plus waste) will cost for the year, then divide by 12. Plus they'll add on a bit to cover your arrears.  Your bill will be from what you've actually used, plus some for your arrears. If your usage has stayed the same, then the rates must have gone up. If you are £140 behind already this year, then that's at least £40 a month depending when you pay and whatever you might have been in credit. From those figures, you are probably paying around £90 a month for actual usage. 

As above, you need to look at the actual costs for this year and last year, and work it out yourself - or post the figures on here and someone will have a look. All water bills have gone up, some more than others. We are on an unmetered supply which would have been £1,200 for the year compared to £600 last year - fortunately we're moving to a meter soon and the estimate is around £50 a month. 

Martin81162

We've just had our Thames Water bill and the DD has been increased by 100% from £19 to £38 a month. Last year it was £17. The bill tells us we have been using less water in the last period, but the increase is pretty steep.

dunstonh

Martin81162 said:

We've just had our Thames Water bill and the DD has been increased by 100% from £19 to £38 a month. Last year it was £17. The bill tells us we have been using less water in the last period, but the increase is pretty steep.

You are telling us what your budget plan direct debit is changing to but that is not your bill.

Unless you are on a septic tank, then £19 seems far too low but seeing as you haven't mentioned your usage, we can only guess.

Martin81162

dunstonh said:

Martin81162 said:

We've just had our Thames Water bill and the DD has been increased by 100% from £19 to £38 a month. Last year it was £17. The bill tells us we have been using less water in the last period, but the increase is pretty steep.

You are telling us what your budget plan direct debit is changing to but that is not your bill.

Unless you are on a septic tank, then £19 seems far too low but seeing as you haven't mentioned your usage, we can only guess.

We have been using about 20m (cubed) per 6 month period for the last 3 years. We have another property which we stay at some of the time. That might explain the low usage. We have a water meter and no septic tank. The sewerage is shared by 3 houses and has been adopted by Thames Water.

We don't expect our water usage to increase.