/One building /2 properties /one water supply. How to work out bills?

[Waterwoes]

To actually spilt the water we have been told its an immense job involving digging up busy pedestrians pavement, floor of property so at the moment it's one bill spilt between two.

This can't be uncommon in some building so how do we work out what each property uses and should pay?

Is it on a meter?

There should be a spur somewhere to the second property, so you can put a sub meter on that.
I do this with my neighbour for his livestock trough which is on my water supply (strange rural legacy set up). But it's an informal arrangement, we don't involve the water company he just gives refunds me the bit that's his.
Don't see why it couldn't be formally done though. Technically speaking a sub meter is the answer.

@PoochiesPinkEars thank you.

I've got a feeling this has been mooted in the past but wasn't possible for some reason.

It feels like an impossible situation.

There must be a point where the feed pipe stops being for one property and becomes that for the other... Unless that's buried underground or something. In which case unless it's under as building you can dig down to get to it and then put a manhole for ongoing access to meter.

Not necessarily cheap or easy.

But the alternative is to have the two properties go halves which sets them up for all kinds of problems.

With new properties, I don’t think you’re allowed shared water supplies. To get your own supply, you’d probably have to do all the work you mention. Still okay for properties with these shared supplies.

I have a commercial building that shares a water supply with an adjacent property.

I had the water board out, showed them where the stop tap to my property was etc and they installed a meter. As soon as I had one, I told the neighbour who also got one. Before that, he’d been told a meter couldn’t be fitted.

I would spend the money to put a check meter on each supply, so that you can split the cost proportionately, unless of course the split is already enshrined in a lease or similar.

While you're doing that, if you don't already have one I'd recommend fitting individual stopcocks at the same time.

Actually, as they're both residential supplies, could you not just ask the water company to put meters in? They're normally very keen to do so!

Not exactly the same but my parents and their attached neighbour wanted to get water meters ( as bills based on rateable value were extortionate) but for some reason to do with supply it was not possible according to the water company. The water supplier estimates each household's usage according to how many people live there, showers or baths, how many washing machine loads etc and that is what they're billed, been doing that for about ten years.
Could the water supplier do that in your case?

I would recommend separation of the supply. You will both benefit from better flow and water pressure. It also means that if you have to turn off the water at the external stop tap it only cuts the water off to one property.
Otherwise you need to get a sub meter installed if the primary property wants to be metered. However this would is generally a private arrangement between households as water companies will only read the primary meter.

@PoochiesPinkEars thank you.
It's one below and one up property.
I will definitely look into sub meters. @Symphony830
It's not a new property and half is commercial.

There is a meter but it's for the building so we can't work out usage.

@MrsMoastyToasty that's the best solution but unfortunately it would cost thousands and having public pavements dug up.

@LBOCS2 do you know how much that costs

@PoochiesPinkEars

Was the sub meter easy to install and what were the costs. Thank you!

@Waterwoes the water company would dig the pavement and road (they hold the appropriate licences). It's just your responsibility to lay the service pipe down to your boundary (leaving enoughpipe for them to work with. ).
We replaced our water service pipe (it was made of lead and was leaking). We hired a mini digger bought the blue service pipe from a builders merchants and did it ourselves. A plumber friend connected it indoors and then we rang the water company and got them to connect at the external stop tap in the road.
it probably helped that I knew the theory as I worked in the water industry .

@MrsMoastyToasty but we would have to pay for water company to dig up road?

@Waterwoes I can't remember if we had to pay anything, but it was 20 years ago.

We had a shared supply in our previous property (terraced cottage). It took 2 years but we did eventually get Anglian Water to fit a new supply to each house, including the road closure, digging up the lane etc. This was 2013, and I remember the work was finally agreed to because the pipe had a leak and we had, had issues for months as our supply was woefully inadequate. It was the road closure that stopped us paying for it previously, it was ridiculous & and the neighbour we shared supply refused to contribute.

@PoochiesPinkEars sorry for question but is working out a sub meter hard? Ie working out what they need to pay?

It was on our case as the pipe was ready to access and farmers always have lots of tools and practical skills. 😁

No, not hard at all. Your water bill gives you the amount you pay per meter cubed.
So I just look at the meter (which counts the volume in meter cubed) and multiply it by the price.
Email my farmer neighbour and the money gets dropped into my account. All very informal.
If it was a whole household I was sharing my bill with I would split the standing charge too, but it's only a livestock trough, so I don't cos I'd be paying that anyway.
Hope this would work if the water company were involved I don't know. My set up is based on trust and if that broke down I could remove the pipe easily enough.

Easy to access that should say.

Was the sub meter easy to install and what were the costs.

DH used to own a shop with flat above, he had a submeter put into the flat so the bill could be split proportional to use. I don't know the details but I don't think it was either very difficult or expensive. Although technically commercial and domestic tariffs are different the water company was ok with this - the shop didn't use much.

@ErrolTheDragon you mean it aas all on the a residential rate?

The unit price for water and the standing charge is usually dependent on the diameter of the pipe. Up to 25mm diameter is the usual domestic size.

I think so. It did take him quite a lot of phone calls to get it in writing that the water company blessed the arrangement (they were confused but helpful). It was all one 'property' though two different uses/types of tenancies within it.