Should we get a water meter?

[DONNA1458]

me an my partner have just bought a house he has spoken to united utility and they say it is £45 a month or it would be cheaper if we went on a meter as there is only two of us, he also said if we didnt think it was benificial we could have it removed upto a year. has anyone got any experience in these, TIA

[redman41]

I went from Paying £30 + per Month to £11 using a Water Meter, so I would think it would definitely be beneficial financially to change over to a Meter. £45 PM is quite a lot really and you would certainly save some money.

[deggers316]

yes definitely get one
there very small and depending on location of your cold water inlet pipe are fitted in around 15 mins
,also from the water company (mines Yorkshire water) you can get a bag that goes in your loo flush to cut down down on the amount of water thats used to flush,if you dont like the meter within a year you can revert back to paying monthly

[deggers316]

btw the meters are free and fitted free too

[redcrx]

i think that the time limit has now changed to 2 years, so you can go back to rates any time within the first 2 years.

[bookbinder]

A water meter is definitely good for two people in a house. My wife and I moved to our present house (new-build) in 1994. The builders fitted a meter as standard to all the houses on this development. At our previous house we paid a lump sum (or whatever it's called) for water, but a meter has saved us money. As a general rule, if there are one or maybe two people in a house, a meter is a good thing, but the more people there are (particularly if there are small children or elderly people, who might need a lot of laundry doing) the less of a benefit a meter is.

[terence7556]

we were advised by our water company that if there are more bedrooms than adults then switch to a meter.this advice was accurate as we halved our bills based on our rates system.
it was free and we had a year to swop back if we chose to, free of charge, so go for it

[Memore]

my bill is £11 per month when i am by myself in my house and £22 when i had my house mate here for 2 years that was reduced from around £35 per month when i moved in as before it was a family in here before and it is a 2 bedroomed house - Thames water charge a standard amount regardless of use so i would definitely recommend it - you are over paying in my opinion for 2 of you and they were very good to reduce it without prompting as they can get an accurate measure and it was free to fit - it is on the street under paving so was no inconvenience at all

[mrs.chappie]

We make a big saving too, by having a water meter. Our water rates would be £580 per year, but with a meter we pay £12 per month (£144 per year).

There are usually only two of us in the house, and we prefer showers to baths, so that helps to keep the bill down. We also use water from a water butt, where possible, to water the garden.

[didappointed]

At £45 a month this works out at £540 a year. Outragious. Which water board are you with. I live by myself and pay £10 a month on a direct debit. Surely you should not pay more then £20 for the two of you. Watch you usage, don't waste it and "20 surely should be enough. Have you got a garden where you could use water there? consider everything before spending £540 a year.