Please or to access all these features

Add post

Watch this thread

Save thread

Start a new thread

Flip thread

Hide thread

My feed

Active Unanswered threads

Getting started FAQ's

Unanswered threads Acronyms Talk guidelines

Hide shortcut buttons

Talk

AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Flip

Original poster

About this sodding leak?!

18 replies

velvetspoon · 03/09/2015 00:09

My front garden/driveway is about 20-25ft long, from house to pavement. A few inches from the end of the drive, on the pavement, there is a small water drain cover.

About 2-3 years ago, this started leaking. Water co came out (eventually), dug a bloody great hole in the pavement, repaired it. All ok.

2.5 weeks ago, I noticed a little bit of water seeming to come out from the cover...I was going to report it, but we were about to go away on holiday and with all the prep for that, it slipped my mind. When we got back from hols, they'd been out (great), dug a massive hole across the pavement completely blocking my driveway (not so great) which was full of water - and water was pouring constantly out the hole and away down the street.

So I assume they're not leaving it like that and will be coming back...by midday last Weds, having heard nothing I gave them a call. Was told they think the leak is coming from my house (despite my house being 25ft away from what is clearly a burst pipe!) and can't repair it til they come to my house. They can't make an appt for this but will pass my details on, and I'll get a call before the end of the week.

I called again late on Friday. This time I was told they have to come to my house to listen for the leak (I kid you not) and again, someone will contact me to arrange an appt.

Yesterday I finally got a callback, however the guy who called me wasn't calling to make an appt, he'd been asked to phone and explain why the hole had been dug! (because there was a leak. No shit Sherlock, it's outside my house, I had noticed). He couldn't make an appt for me but (you've guessed it) will get someone to call.

So now there's been water pouring down my street, and a massive hole in the pavement for almost 2 weeks, and I have no idea when it's going to be fixed. I still don't understand why they need to come into my house, when the leak is clearly outside, or why this all seems so complicated and no one at my water co seems to know what they're doing. Thankfully I'm not on a water meter, but despite that aibu to be annoyed by all this? I've found out tonight I may have high BP, I reckon this water palaver is probably to blame!

OP posts:

CJCreggsmyhero · 03/09/2015 00:15

Twitter is your friend.

I have it from a highly placed reliable source, that should you tweet about your issues and get friends to retweet you will be very very surprised how quickly the lovely water company respond to your issue.

Also, local councillor should be able to help - they love a good 'digging up the road' barney with utility vandals.

HelenaDove · 03/09/2015 00:34

I sympathise OP we have had an ongoing leak from the main that supplies our road since Feb 2011. They kept coming out and switching the water off with no notice several times to do a patch up and tosh over.

There are now 3 separate leaks all within a 2 min walk of each other. The latest leak has been there for 3 weeks. I suspect no one has reported it because they/we are sick of having our water supply stopped with NO NOTICE.

We did get notice one time when they turned the water off in the road to fit a monitor to try and prove to us we would be better off with a water meter. Funnily enough they found the time to come to every flat and notify us then and hand out leaflets trying to convince us to switch over to a meter. So they can fucking well start notifying customers in every flat when they want to turn the supply off to do their patch up and tosh over.

As for the monitor......they said it would monitor the usage to see if our part of this road would be better off with a meter and that they would contact us six months later with the outcome of something we never asked for. They didnt!!!

HelenaDove · 03/09/2015 00:38

And one of those times they left ppl without water for 6 hours with no notice and then without electric for another 6 when they cut through a cable.

Original poster

velvetspoon · 03/09/2015 07:13

Am not on twitter, might have to ask one of my friends who is.

I suppose at least they've not cut off my supply. Yet.

OP posts:

Original poster

velvetspoon · 03/09/2015 09:24

The water from my leak is now running pretty much the length of the road. I dread to think how much has been wasted!

Not getting v far with twitter...might have to try local councillor, if I knew who they were.

OP posts:

HelenaDove · 03/09/2015 14:11

when you tweet someone who is failing in their duty like this tag @ someone else in eg. @channel4news so it appears in their feed as well If you are just tweeting the water company and they ignore you it wont appear to others who are following their feed and if you havent got many followers its like tweeting into the abyss.

HelenaDove · 04/09/2015 20:01

Any progress OP?

Junosmum · 04/09/2015 20:19

Your 'house' or more accurately the water supply you are responsible for ends at your garden gate. So the leak may well be on your property.

I can understand the frustration, water companies do nothing quickly- we had a leak down our street for ages.

Socy · 04/09/2015 20:24

I empathise. Have they tried to blame the computer systems yet? Roll on Jeremy as PM and renationalisation

HelenaDove · 04/09/2015 22:37

Yep Thats privateisation folks.

Fatmomma99 · 04/09/2015 23:29

Well said HelenaDove!

We had a leak and my water company were DESPERATE to say it came from my property (it didn't) because if it did, it's a longer lead time to come and investigate and we pay for the repair not them. This leak went on for 10 days they were absolutely crap every step of the way. I ended up writing them a (brilliant, if I do say so myself) 3 page (typed!) letter documenting all the ways they'd failed and I had done above and beyond to report and solve the leak problem.
Despite it's brilliance, my letter would have been ignored, had it not been for the fact that I had a neighbour (also affected) who is a journalist and contacted them threatening to write an article for a national newspaper. At which point they escalated my complaint (turns out there's a complaints team for oiks like me, and a whole other complaints team for people like my journalist neighbour). So in the end, my letter was dealt with by a shit-hot employee (because guess which team they work for!) and they gave us nearly £1000 in compensation.

So, publicity is the way to go!

HelenaDove · 05/09/2015 00:00

Nice one Fatmomma.

CJCreggsmyhero · 05/09/2015 00:35

Use Directgov website to find your local councillor and agree on including others in your tweet. Local councillors, local newspaper etc (they always love a good daily mail sad face story)

HelenaDove · 07/09/2015 17:32

Any joy OP?

Original poster

velvetspoon · 07/09/2015 17:48

Yes and no - I finally got a call back on Fri, and someone is coming out.

This Friday.

Will now wait and see if they turn up!

OP posts:

HelenaDove · 07/09/2015 18:10

Dragging it out arent they?

HelenaDove · 11/09/2015 14:58

Hope they turn up today Velvet.

Original poster

velvetspoon · 12/09/2015 09:13

He turned up, was here for 5 mins. Said he couldn't understand why nothing had been done sooner. Didn't need to check anything in my property as quite obvious leak was outside!

He's now raised a job for the repair but apparently that might be another few weeks.

OP posts:

Flip