Understanding your water bill

It’s more crucial than ever that you know what you are paying for. While you won’t be able to switch your water and sewerage suppliers, you might want to consider switching to a water meter and saving on your water bill.

Your water bill should tell you who you are paying to take away your waste water – or contact Ofwat for more information. Of course, you won’t be paying this if you have a septic tank or other waste water system in place. Your bill will also include a charge for highway drainage and in some cases a surface water rebate. If you are unhappy about the quality of this service, it could be worth contacting Ofwat to find out if you are eligible for any refund.

Your water bill should include account and personal details, your standing charge based on rateable value, the charge for water use, and VAT details. It should also include information on what to do if you are having financial difficulties or in case of an emergency.

Rateable value

A "rateable value" (RV) is a measure of the deemed value of a property. RVs were originally a way of assessing the value of local property rates before Council tax was introduced. Today RVs are only used for calculating unmeasured water bills, as the setting of RVs was discontinued in 1990 with the introduction of the Community Charge. This means that people living in properties built since this date will not have a RV for their home. Some argue that this isn’t a particularly fair system, since it doesn’t take into account people’s incomes.

Your water bill should include your account and personal details, charge for water use – based on the number of units of water your meter shows you’ve used - a standing charge and VAT details. The bill should also include information on what to do if you are having financial difficulties or in case of an emergency.

England, Wales and Scotland

Your water bill will include the number of units of water you actually use, based on readings taken from a meter.

Northern Ireland

Domestic customers do not currently have to pay for water utilities and sewerage services. However, the Government recently announced plans to consider introducing domestic water charges.

If you are having any difficulty paying your bills, your water and sewerage supplier should be able to offer you advice and agree a suitable payment arrangement for you. If you dispute the amount of the bill, your supplier should investigate your concerns so that you are confident you are being charged correctly.