I live in a modest 3 bedroomed house which is rated at level B for council tax purposes. So why is Yorkshire Water charging me an astronomical £460 for my water supply next year ? I have often read that the average water bill ( all water suppliers - not just Yorkshire Water ) is around £200 - £250 per annum so why do I have to pay so much ? My son left home last year so there are now only two adults. We don't use a dishwasher but do like to keep our garden well watered in the summer. So would it be worth considering changing to metered water ? Can any of you give me a rough idea what you pay annually if you are on a meter ? And what happens if a leak occurs from a pipe that is situated on your property ? Do you have to pay for the lost water ? I'm undecided so please help ! Many thanks to anyone who takes the time to reply. :confused:

You can have a meter fitted, take readings (yourself) to monitor your usage and decide whether or not to go back to a flat rate, if you wish, within the first twelve months.
Your supplier would normally read and bill you once a year, which would be too late to make up your mind, so you should take a reading around month 10 and ask for a bill.


The only possible drawback is that, once fitted, the meter cannot be removed and when you sell, the new occupants have no option other than to be metered.
You may consider whether or not that will reduce the value of your future sale.



... Yes. You will pay for leakages on your side of the meter.

... if there is just two of you, a meter should save money. Will depend on your watering though. Get a few butts?

For any single people living in an upper story flat, try asking for a water meter. The answer should be no, but then you can ask for your charges to be assessed as if you did have a meter. I did this and achieved quite a reduction, so well worth trying.

i was watching the 'money saving expert' (forgot his name) on tv the other day, he said as a rule of thumb, if you have fewer people than bedrooms, a meter will be cheaper. As for the garden, buy a few water butts. :thumbsup:

I live in a modest 3 bedroomed house which is rated at level B for council tax purposes. So why is Yorkshire Water charging me an astronomical £460 for my water supply next year ? I have often read that the average water bill ( all water suppliers - not just Yorkshire Water ) is around £200 - £250 per annum so why do I have to pay so much ? My son left home last year so there are now only two adults. We don't use a dishwasher but do like to keep our garden well watered in the summer. So would it be worth considering changing to metered water ? Can any of you give me a rough idea what you pay annually if you are on a meter ? And what happens if a leak occurs from a pipe that is situated on your property ? Do you have to pay for the lost water ? I'm undecided so please help ! Many thanks to anyone who takes the time to reply. :confused:



stick witht he rates, meter is ok if you live on your own, but trying to sell the house after will give u problems

Think i'd stick to the rates if you're keen gardeners tbh.

I've just been on u switch and yorkshire water sites. and calculated how much we use. U switch asks more questions to which I answered a bit over the top. The results of both came to much the same, a saving of between £180 and £200 per year. We pay £560 for a detached house with 2 occupants. I'm going to opt for a meter and check it for a year. If it works out more you can have it taken out.

I live in a modest 3 bedroomed house which is rated at level B for council tax purposes. So why is Yorkshire Water charging me an astronomical £460 for my water supply next year ? I have often read that the average water bill ( all water suppliers - not just Yorkshire Water ) is around £200 - £250 per annum so why do I have to pay so much ? My son left home last year so there are now only two adults. We don't use a dishwasher but do like to keep our garden well watered in the summer. So would it be worth considering changing to metered water ? Can any of you give me a rough idea what you pay annually if you are on a meter ? And what happens if a leak occurs from a pipe that is situated on your property ? Do you have to pay for the lost water ? I'm undecided so please help ! Many thanks to anyone who takes the time to reply. :confused:
Share it with your neighbours for a small fee :P

If it works out more you can have it taken out.

No.
It will never be taken out.

You can revert back to a flat rate charge, but the meter will stay for the next occupants.

We're on a water meter (through no choice of our own) and wind up running a 3 butt water system for the summer months, with only one of those collecting, and the other 2 decanted from that

maybe I should just cut down on the number of pots we have :huh: - then again, we use the rain water for cleaning the dog area too

I'd be interested in using harvested water for things like toilet flushing, but I've been led to believe that it's only economical to have installed if you're doing it on a newbuild

We are in a similar house, have always been on a water meter since we came here and have never paid more than £50 per qtr.

You must change and try, if after a year it's more expensive you CAN revert back to the ratable system, what have you got to lose??

Coincidentally I have just phoned YW today to get my parents switched, rule of thumb as someone pointed out more bedrooms than occupants but we're 3/3 and still gain loads. DO IT!!!

For any single people living in an upper story flat, try asking for a water meter. The answer should be no, but then you can ask for your charges to be assessed as if you did have a meter. I did this and achieved quite a reduction, so well worth trying.

Im now paying £33 per quarter on a water meter instaed of £36 per month :mad:

Do it for sure. We had to have a water meter a few years ago because we moved into a new build. It cost far less than are previous house did, which had been done on the rateable value.

When we then moved into our current house I had it changed to a meter, and it at least halved the cost. Having said that, the cost this year has jumped up quite considerably -

But that can be explained by the not so long ago arrival of sprog number 2. So now the washing machine is on most days, along with daily bath for baby, shower/bath for 5 y.o. then at least 1 other shower each day for an adult.

By the sound of the origianl OP's reduced occupancy you'd be better off. Just make sure you save water (and therefore the planet!) by using water butts for the garden filled from the gutters. You can also put either 1 or 2 half litre plastic pop bottles filled with water into the cistern of each toilet in the house - think about the number of times it gets fluhsed in a year, that can add up to quite a saving!

the pop bottle theory is outdated, since the great big old cisterns no longer exist in most houses - so the water saved by each flush is usually re-wasted by multiple flushes for solid waste

if you're concerned enough, replace the mechanism with a dual flush one :thumbsup:

the biggest modern water-waster is the power shower. We've all been indoctrinated to believe that showering is more efficient than bathing, but unless you can leap into and out of a power shower within 2 mins, you're probably wasting more water than a bath would

When I moved a few years ago I was paying water rates until I discovered I had a water meter cleverly hidden next door.
You should see the cheque I get back for overpayment.

For any single people living in an upper story flat, try asking for a water meter. The answer should be no, but then you can ask for your charges to be assessed as if you did have a meter. I did this and achieved quite a reduction, so well worth trying.

I'm in a first floor flat and have a meter - it's under the sink.

Having a water meter fitted will save you money.

Chris

I used to pay 10 monthly payments of £33 a month, I went to a meter 4 years ago and I paid £19 per month for 2 years and I now pay £17 per month...3 x bedroom house with 2 adults, same as you no dishwasher but i do water my garden frequently..
GO TO A meter NOW

I presume everyone ha had their water bills through then? I was going to come a post a similar thing after after opening ours this morning.

I thought I was dear but it's nowhere near any of the £400 ones on here. Last year we paid £247, this year we are paying about £320. Why the big increase?

btw im with Severn Trent over here in S20.

Im now paying £33 per quarter on a water meter instead of £36 per month :mad:

I was concerned, when I moved here, as this property is metered, from a property which was on water rates. I was terrified I would end up with massive bills.

I'm fairly careful, with water, generally, and I was paying just shy of £6 a week, five years ago, on the water rated property.

My last two water bills were £33 and £30 respectively. Which works out at under £2.60 a week. Huge difference, much better. (so I'll not be paying more than £140 a year compared to almost £312)

I live in a modest 3 bedroomed house which is rated at level B for council tax purposes. So why is Yorkshire Water charging me an astronomical £460 for my water supply next year ? I have often read that the average water bill ( all water suppliers - not just Yorkshire Water ) is around £200 - £250 per annum so why do I have to pay so much ? My son left home last year so there are now only two adults. We don't use a dishwasher but do like to keep our garden well watered in the summer. So would it be worth considering changing to metered water ? Can any of you give me a rough idea what you pay annually if you are on a meter ? And what happens if a leak occurs from a pipe that is situated on your property ? Do you have to pay for the lost water ? I'm undecided so please help ! Many thanks to anyone who takes the time to reply. :confused:

Hi sue switch to a meter,if your'e not happy you can switch back,one of my quarter bills for last summer was £32 for water,sewerage and surface water for year under £100,two in household and use hosepipe in garden regularly in summer.Volume usage is charged per cubic metre (about 110.0p percube)there are 264 gallons in a cubic meter of water so that gives you some idea of how much use you have ,i have 40 gallon w/butt but it only really saves about 20p,my son changed over and saved about £200 a year(band C) Y/Water fitted free of charge.I pay around just over half you're paying for year (band E):cool:

For any single people living in an upper story flat, try asking for a water meter. The answer should be no,

Why would the answer be no? I'm single, in an upper storey flat and I've got a water meter.

When we went onto a meter the bills halved.
we are now paying £25 per month. 2 person household, washing machine, garden watering.
They do insist on a direct debit being set up.
No regrets at all.
Go for it, it doesn't cost anything.

I agree, I did the same although we pay when the bill comes in, no direct debit. Do you have more bedrooms than people? If the answer is yes, then get one.

We recently changed to a water meter (4 beds, two adults, three kids and a dog!). We were paying £60 per month over 8 months, we are now paying £30 per month over 12 months, only about £60 difference over the year, however our last statement told us we were already £80 in credit so approx £140 saving over the year. I'd say go for it, the water company tried to talk me out of applying for a meter and I had to question his motives, all I can say is the water companies are greedy. He said that if we went for a meter we would be watching every litre we use, I agreed and said that was part of the point, at least it made us more aware of what we were using and wasting, so in effect it has made us more careful but we are benefitting in our pockets and the environment wins (slightly)too.

Water meters are cheaper?! I think I may have a problem then.

We recently changed to a water meter as in our house there are 2 people in a 3 bedroomed terrace. We only ever have showers (The type over a bath, not a power shower), don't water the garden and don't use the washer more than twice a week. Now, you would have thought we'd save money on a meter given this but our bill's gone from £26 for 10 months to £43 pounds for 12 months. Obviously I'll phone on Monday to see whats going on but has this happened to anyone else?
How easy is it to switch back?

http://www.yorkshirewater.com/?OBH=5338

http://www.yorkshirewater.com/?OBH=5275

http://www.yorkshirewater.com/?OBH=4706

http://www.yorkshirewater.com/?OBH=4706

http://www.yorkshirewater.com/?OBH=4708

Try these links hope they help

For any single people living in an upper story flat, try asking for a water meter. The answer should be no, but then you can ask for your charges to be assessed as if you did have a meter. I did this and achieved quite a reduction, so well worth trying.

I tried asking yorkshire water about something similar, i'm on water rates, didnt ask for a water meter but did ask if there could be a reduction in what i pay as i am a single person, but they said no :mad:

I feel foolish for not having switched to a meter years ago. We are making a big saving, despite using just as much water as before! They're great!

We've just had our first bill for a family of four, saved around £40.00 for the quarter.

A word of warning

http://business.timesonline.co.uk/tol/business/money/consumer_affairs/article3735367.ece

I tried asking yorkshire water about something similar, i'm on water rates, didnt ask for a water meter but did ask if there could be a reduction in what i pay as i am a single person, but they said no :mad:

I asked for assessed charges as I couldn`t have a meter being in an upper storey flat. I live alone,come under Yorkshire Water and my bill clearly states `Assessed charges for a single person household`. I would try again if I were you.

Why would the answer be no? I'm single, in an upper storey flat and I've got a water meter.
Perhaps your block is more modern than mine and the infrastructure is in place to allow meters. I had an inspector visit and they said a meter wasn`t possible. so I have assessed charges.