Water Rates

[goodgoalie]

Although I pay one company for my main water supply and sewerage, I also have to pay a second company just for the water that comes off my gutters, which seems a very strange arrangement. Does anyone else have a similar situation?

[Bazile]

Doesn't the water that comes off your gutters go into the sewer ?

Very odd that two companies are involved

[Prudie]

Not currently but I have had to pay 2 separate companies in the past.

[hc4361]

Yes, I do

[murraymints]

someone please explain this to me !

[bhg481]

Supplied water and waste water are treated separately. We pay a single company but the bill has two sections.

[murraymints]

my Council tax bill just shows water...Scotland..

[hc4361]

Water and sewerage are not included in the Council Tax in England.

[murraymints]

ah... we get Council tax bill that includes water..but is itemised independently ...

[EDDIE51]

How is the water off your gutters measured? It must be measured to know how much to charge.
We get 2 parts to our water bill , metered water used and waste water/sewerage. The waste water is 90% of the metered water. The 10% 'discount' is to allow for water that falls on my property as rain.
( from the gutters) . I have never heard of someone being charged for disposal of rain water from the gutters. That is the council's responsibility.

[bhg481]

EDDIE - in England the water companies process waste water and it may be that one company supplies the water and another treats the waste, hence the 2-part bill. The waste water isn't measured, they just assume that what is supplied ends up as waste.

[EDDIE51]

The questioner said that he was charged for 'water that comes off his gutters'. To me that suggests he gets a bill for it. I have one company that supplies the metered water and another company that disposes of waste water and sewage.The waste and sewage is 90% of the metered water supplied. The 10% is to allow for rain water off the gutters. I do not get charged for disposal of rainwater. I am curious as to how the questioner gets a bill for rainwater disposal and how it is measured.

[Old_Geezer]

No one denies supply and removal differ; but two bills for removal ? That seems weird. Is there any law that says you can't pipe the gutter water into the foul pipe ?

[bhg481]

EDDIE - I see what you are getting at. We get our water through Tames Water. If you look at their website they explain exactly how you are charged, whether metered or unmetered. There are charges based on your usage or rateable value (metered or unmetered) and then a fixed charge to cover admin costs. "For wastewater customers, it also contributes towards the costs of providing surface water drainage and highway drainage".

[Old_Geezer]

Since the evil water company supplying my area forced folk onto a meter billing I note they assume the same amount is taken away as supplied. They use it as part of the waste water bill calculation !

It occurred to me that some will have ended up on the garden. Never thought of taking away rainwater.

Now wondering if this is the next part of the con. Force folk onto meter first whether they approve or not, then find ways of sending multple bill demands using any feeble excuse.

[EDDIE51]

I live in a block of 6 terraced houses. Only the end one has a gutter downpipe to the drains. So if goodgoalie's charging system applied to me one house would get the bill 6 properties.

[bhg481]

OG - didn't you find that your bill dropped when you went on to a meter? Ours dropped to about 1/3 of our unmetered bill.

[EDDIE51]

OG read my post. The amount of water billed for disposal is 90% of that supplied through the meter. The 10% is to cover rain water from the gutters. I chose to get a meter. Previously the water rates were £9 a week added on to the rent £462 a year. Now I pay under £250 a year on a meter including waste water. Not far off half what I used to pay.

[woofgang]

you are saying its the water off your gutters but what it actually is is payment for surface and highway drainage which does include the water off your roof but isn't only the water off your roof. My Sis had this in Kent where she paid one water authority for surface and highway drainage and another for mains and domestic waste....its about where the surface and highway boundary is....hers actually went down the middle of the road a few streets from her, one side paid one company and the other side paid the other. There was great disgruntlement because the companies didn't charge the same amount. Apparently it was a legacy glitch from privatisation....eventually the same authority they paid for mains and waste took over surface and highways drainage.

[fiction-factory]

My evil water company forced me to accept a 70% reduction in my water bill when I went onto a meter.

[woofgang]

I know....mine did too....they really are indescribably nasty