Would you report somebody for using a hosepipe during a ban?

[BurntBroccoli]

Lots of people on FB saying they will continue using as much water as they please as they have “paid for it”.

Reservoir levels are at 55% capacity when normally it’s 89% and with much more hot weather to come, I’m worried that they will implement standpipes due to people being irresponsible.

We have the 2nd highest rainfall in Europe yet the the highest water costs, the most water shortage, the most sewage. How can it not be because we privatised water supply to monopolies?

I wonder why, what reason would they have for using a hosepipe other to water their grass? Genuine question it just seems an odd exemption.

I wouldn't report anyone, a bit of garden watering would seem peanuts in the grand scheme of things.

The local police force have put a post on Facebook reminding people they are not the hosepipe police and do not want to be bothered by people reporting use of hosepipes to them.
I don't even know who you are supposed to report people to ? Is there a cash incentive ? £50 for dobbing someone in ?

I walked round the local reservoir the other day and it is very, very low. I can't think of any reason to use a hosepipe, my lawn is shit anyway due to the trees and will be abundant and verdant in September when it chucks it down for my annual two weeks holiday, the car is held together by dirt, the patio looks like something off Shameless so no need to power wash when a lit match would do the job.
I did used to pour the old washing up water on the lawn, but realised that this rather upset the local ant colony so have stopped,I really respect their work ethic/community ethos.
I am just filling a bowl of water for the birds and squirrels and anything else that meanders this way, using a jug

I wouldn't report them because I am too lazy to.

But I think anyone who waters their lawn is an idiot. There is zero need for it. As soon as it rains, it will recover.

And take your car to a car wash or use a bucket.

People are far too precious.

I'd turn a blind eye to them watering the veg patch so long as it wasn't every day

Watering a veg patch is allowed. Because it food. And yes, they would have to water many of them every day because they won’t develop otherwise.

The blue badge/vulnerable user exemption is because they are unlikely to be able to use a watering can for long.

Drove past my local garden centre today and they had their sprinkler pretty much only watering the pavement outside. Same as every day. They leave it in for hours.
The water company left a burst pipe literally gushing out on the next street to me for days and days. It was so bad that it damaged nearby banking, causing garden to subside. This was only fixed a few weeks ago. Another pipe has been broken near me for ages.
So no I wouldn’t report them

Yes I would. All those saying they’ve “paid for it, so they’ll use it” are treating water as if it’s an infinite resource, but it just is not! When it’s all used up, there won’t be any for any of us. Some people need a reality check.

No I would not report them and it ticks me right off that we have had a leak in our road for 2 weeks now with absolutely nothing being doing other than a bloke spraying a circle round the source as though was not not obvious. Water gushing down the road and not all of it going in a drain yet just have 40 odd percent increases in our bills. Whole thing is a disgrace.

'The blue badge/vulnerable user exemption is because they are unlikely to be able to use a watering can for long.'

But unfurling a hosepipe and handling one is just as difficult if you have mobility or strength issues. Surely disabled people just use a small plastic watering can for their plants like everyone else.

Our neighbours put their sex pond right on the boundary with our garden, practically under our bedroom window.

They also do stuff like have their sprinkler on in the middle of the day when the sun is beating down, when anyone with half a brain knows that is the worst time to water a lawn. And you only have to look at google maps images of our neighbourhood to see that they were watering their lawn all through previous hosepipe bans, when no one else was.

So yes, I would 100% consider reporting them if I saw them watering their lawn or refilling their hot tub.

Just so's you know, planning permission was granted for the Havant Thicket Reservoir in June 2021, with construction work already underway, and is planned to be completed and operational by 2029.
Like you, I simply don't get the people on here commenting that they'll just carry on using water as normal because of the water companies' bad operational practices - they are appalling, but that's a separate issue and won't be of any help when the supply to our homes has been cut off and we're queuing at standpipes. It's a mindless, anti-social attitude.
I heard one of my neighbours jet-cleaning (their patio, I guess?) for ages this morning and I quietly seethed. We don't even have a hosepipe ban where I live, but I still wouldn't be using water for something like that - it's so unnecessary. I've even bought a dry-cleaning spray to clean my car, which works really well, so I don't waste water on it.

Wish we still had the laugh emoji. Your post tickled me. The water companies should employ their own hosepipe police to catch the wrong doers. They could run a recruitment drive on MN. I could never in all conscience report someone for keeping their garden plants alive. As we saw during Covid there are many people around today who would have happily joined the Stasi in East Berlin. Then they could throughly enjoy reporting their neighbours. I would however like the forecast drought to put an end to the yucky sex ponds in people’s gardens.

Only standpipes will help them understand. No bath, no shower no hairwash. A flannel.

No I wouldn’t. It definitely reminds me of covid with some people eager to report and others who turn a blind eye.

As for the person who posted about people using too much due to lower rated appliances etc. The higher rated appliances cost more to buy, peope who only have a bath don’t usually have a choice about it, people who aren’t on a meter don’t usually have a choice about it either. We pay almost £1500 a year for water, apparently a meter would cost us about £900 a year.

I've a hosepipe and am fairly disabled having back problems so can't do too much bending, pulling or twisting - the hosepipe is left unwound where I need it to reach most plants. I can't pull it much or move it to get to other areas, for those I need to use a small watering can, but I can only lift 2.5 litres of water now so that's a lot of trips which I find tiring. Garden is on several levels so is tricky to navigate.

😂

If I didn't like them much, I might put it on my list of things to do. But, that list's fifty squillion jobs long, so I wouldn't bet money on me getting round to it.

Why bother? Nothing is going to happen to them.

My DSis and I were chatting on the phone today. We live over 100miles apart but both are supplied by Severn Trent. She is literally on the border and half her road are with Yorkshire water. She was going to water her garden when she arrived home. She already has her water bill at the ready for moaning neighbours. The funny thing is that she is the least garden proud on the road.
She was checking with me to see if we had a hosepipe ban before using it.
We redesigned our garden last year. We have slightly raised beds with a 3-4 inch thickness of slate chippings to stop weeds and retain water. The plants look great but the lawn is suffering. The bonus is that it doesn’t need mowing. We are on very sandy soil so well drained throughout the year with no chance of subsidence if the drought continues.

These are valid points. And also, why have no new reservoirs been built in the UK during the last 30 years, despite the population increase due to mass immigration? I believe new ones are being planned, but they should have been in operation years ago.

Fair point!

We have a water reclamation tank (an insane — and insanely expensive — idea of DH’s) that means our hosepipe isn’t connected to the mains but to that. If someone reported me, I’d be quite indignant!

I am a Severn Trent customer and the last time I heard their CEO is paid just a smidgeon under £4 million, and our charges went up by 25% this financial year. We havn't got a ban yet and I doubt I would report someone (unless I hated them of course!) for using a hosepipe. The biggest joke about water privatisation apart from the appalling standards of tthe water companies is the fact that nobody can shop around for their water. What an utter con it all is unless you are wealthy enough to invest in shares

Probably not but would probably dob the arsehole people I don’t like in 😂

We are not on a meter and have no waste (on a septic tank) my charming water company have just put my water up to nearly £100 per month…they have been mismanaged for years so they don’t have my sympathy

Absolutely not! There is no need for a hosepipe ban here (nor do we have one) all the local reservoirs are fuller currently than they have been in any previous years in July have been. We may have had a dry spring yes but we sure as hell did not have a dry winter. If the water companies are so utterly incompetent at storing water properly when it’s available then it’s on them. We are along way from running out of water despite the fear mongering media.