Water Meters- Should We All Have One?

We have one. We love in a new build house I believe all new build houses have them.

Hi,

Calendargirl, what makes you think that water is free in the UK if there is no meter?

One was installed 18mths ago by Infinity water my supplier. It certainly has made me more mindful of the amount I use. I recently asked them to switch me from unmetered to metered (we were given 2 yrs to stay unmetered) and my bills within 2 months went from £47 to £30 due to be reassessed in 3 mths when it may reduce further.
I do live alone so it won’t be they same for large households but I certainly have benefitted from having a meter fitted.

Well said Calendargirl!

I have lived in properties with water meters for many years and I think it is fair that 'we pay for what we use' the same as energy.

Water is a precious element so often taken for granted - this was evident on the previous thread to which the OP referred. However, it has never been the fact that I have to pay for every drop coming out of my taps, I have always had respect for it and was brought up to 'not leave the taps running' ie when brushing teeth etc.

I remember my Mum grumbling whenever there was a burst water main which happened frequently in our area. She would point to the water teeming out of the road surface and gushing down the drains commenting on the dreadful waste. I guess it's just instilled in me how precious water is regardless of reservoir levels and the amount of rain, or not as the case maybe.

None of us should be complacent about it.

PollyDolly,same question to you as I have asked Calendargirl.

I can't imagine not having one. Here in Germany it is the norm, possibly because so many households are in rented flats and have to pay for water and electricity as they use it.

I live in Powys. There are 47 reservoirs in England and Wales of which 8 are in my county, the highest of all. We don’t have a shortage of water in the UK, it just isn’t valued enough for investment to be made in the infrastructure. I don’t think water meters are the answer because I don’t think domestic use of water is the problem. What we need is a nationwide strategic approach to increase capacity and reduce wastage.

BigBertha1 there may be legislation is some areas of the UK for all new houses to have a water meter installed but not all areas are included. In some areas there is no need for this additional expenditure.

I personally think water meters are a good idea but no one should be forced to have one.
We requested one from Anglian water over 20 years ago when they were doing a promotion of them. If you didn't save money with in the 1st two years you could have them removed free of charge.
Our bills went down from £42.00 a month to £16.00. All these years later they are still only £26.00. I convinced an elderly neighbour and my brother to get one, both lived alone, they paid £10.00 a month.
Whilst the savings are a huge factor alone, it does also make you think about your usage.
I would always recommend a meter.

Baggytrazzas no-one is saying that those properties without meters get this for free. WHat is being said is that meters mean that people pay for what they use

For many people on these threads living either by themselves or with just one other person, it is likely that a meter will actually reduce the amount they pay

But for families who may shower/bathe two or three times a day, use washing machine once or twice each day, have hosepipe in garden, sometimes on a spray much of each day, wash their (maybe two or three) cars regularly, etc. then they would pay a lot more.

This is how is should be. AND.....think there is little doubt that having this resource metered, usually means that people think about their use of it.

Hi Franbern, sorry but both CalendarGirl and PollyDolly say that everyone should be paying for the water they use and so meters should be installed to enable charges to be made. It's quite clearly there in both posts.

As yet, no response to my queries from either.

It should be nationalised as should electricity.

Those without meters already pay a lot more, £75 a month compared to all those who pay less than £30. Lets face it most people opt for a meter because they think they will save money. I think bout my water usage, never wash my car it goes to a car wash, only ever have one shower a day. I have water butts to fill the pond etc. I pay for what I use and so do others with no meter. Do you seriously think people just waste water all day long.

No, I think that if you live somewhere with a lot of rain you probably can’t ’waste’water. If you spill some it will evaporate and go back into the system, or nourish grass or other vegetation. What would be gained by making people pay more for something just because others have to? Life in the UK is not ‘fair’. Some areas have far more spent per capita than others on all sorts of things (London in particular). Some have subsidised transport and others no buses at all. Education varies hugely from area to area etc (I’m talking about from city to city, not country to country here). Housing varies in price and quality too, which as a huge impact on people’s lives. Theatres and other Arts venues are concentrated more in some areas than others. Should we ‘equalise’ all of that, too, and if we do do we level up or down, so that nobody benefits from the advantages of where they live? It is often the case that areas with natural beauty have few amenities but plentiful natural resources. It would be a shame to charge more for something that we all need just because some areas have a shortage.

I think we should renationalise amenities and run them as non-profit ventures, and invest in the water (and fuels) that we collectively own. If we don’t do that we should fine water companies heavily for allowing leakage from pipes and for dumping raw sewage. They should not be allowed to make a penny in profit until those things are sorted out and maintained. To me, that would be fairer than making people in areas of high rainfall monitor their water useage.

Daily Mail this morning -

Our leaks shame: Thames Water is wasting 635m litres A DAY through leaky pipes... but bosses are STILL threatening to impose hosepipe ban

So no, I don't think we should all have a water meter

Those without meters already pay a lot more, £75 a month compared to all those who pay less than £30.

If you don’t have a meter your water rates are based on the Council Tax band of your house, and vary from area to area as well. We are Band A, so our rate is low, and when we looked into getting a meter we were told that our savings, if any, would have been negligible.

This doesn’t mean we waste water - we most certainly don’t. But we’ll stay as we are - the next people to live here might well be a family that by definition has to use more water, and having a fixed low rate might mean there’s one bill less for them to have to worry about.

Baggytrazzas

Hi,

Calendargirl, what makes you think that water is free in the UK if there is no meter?

Have only just come back to this Baggytrazz, as I have been out picking tomatoes.

I don’t understand your question. I have not said that water is ‘free’ if you don’t have a meter. I realise you will pay a water charge, but if you were on a meter, I honestly think that you would think twice about hosing down a plastic doormat ‘ on full blast’ for 20 minutes, even if the water runs down to water other pots.

We are on a meter, we have just been watering said tomatoes from a watering can, sadly not from our numerous water butts as they are totally dry, but we are mindful of the water usage as we are paying for all we use. If we weren’t on a meter, well, we could just wander round with a hose, watering willy nilly.

That was the point I was trying to make.

If you pay a high water charge in the first place, perhaps it makes no difference to you.

Very good post Doodledog.

I’m confused. We pay water rates. If everyone on a water meter is paying less for their water-is that because they were profligate with their water before?
We, including neighbours, were told we couldn’t have a water meter, but with 5 adults including a dance student (sweaty work that) would we pay less or more if they managed to sort it so we could have one?

I’m confused as well, Mollygo.

Perhaps some people do only think about cutting down when it hits their pockets.

We use water sparingly, have water butts, two minute showers, save water run off for watering the garden etc etc. We don’t have a meter, but that doesn’t mean we don’t care about the planet or our grandchildren’s future.

Yes we have a water meter, it does make you more aware of usage.
We are currently saving money.

Baggytrazzas

PollyDolly,same question to you as I have asked Calendargirl.

Baggytrazzas, I am well aware that water isn't free in the UK but I do consider that paying for what you use is a fairer way.

Let me put this into perspective for you: Hypothetically, a street of identical houses, some occupied by families and some sole occupants. Theoretically, each household pays a set charge. How is that fair when the family homes would use far more water that someone living alone?

Installation of water meters make it fair, encourage people to be conservative and discourage complacency; water is precious and should be respected.

I am paying £478 this year for water and sewage. Do sometimes wonder why I am careful with water when it makes no difference as here in Scotland we have a set charge. We are sometimes asked to be extra careful. Wish Scottish water were more careful as we have had several days of no water recently due to burst pipes and we are only 2 miles from the loch they take the water from.

Water pressure is getting a problem here as more new houses are built and the water system is gravity fed there is no way of increasing the pressure and Scottish water are not interested in investing here.

Installation of water meters make it fair, encourage people to be conservative and discourage complacency; water is precious and should be respected.

This would work (logically at least) if we were talking about a resource that is finite in all areas, but water is not. As has been said, some areas are higher in rainfall than others. It's precious in that we need it to live, but somewhere like Cumbria is awash with it . It rains a lot, there are lakes filling could with evaporated water, and huge areas with rivers and streams that haven't been built over.

Morally, I'm not so sure that it does work. Do we want to go back to the days when children from large families were 'the smelly one' at school? I remember that there was always a child in every class whose family were poor and who didn't have clean clothes or a clean body, and their lives must have been miserable. People used to say that it doesn't cost money to be clean, but that's not true. Heating water, buying soap, and just having the facilities to wash clothes and lots of children costs - do we want to add a higher water bill to that, so that large families struggle to bath their kids and wash clothes regularly? I see nothing wrong with basic things being subsidised so that they are available to all, and it doesn't get much more basic than water.