To think they’re having a laugh charging this

[FlyingSoap]

We have recently bought a 3 bed semi with no water meter. Fixed yearly price of £582.47.
They have (somehow) worked out that although we missed the first 3 months of the year, we will be paying £62 a month for water. I think this is stupidly high for a 3 bedroom house, 2 adults and a baby. They aren’t budging on the price & saying we’ll have to just request they instal a water meter.

AIBU thinking it’s high?

Sounds about right to me

Just get a meter installed

I would agree to the meter

We pay about that with a water meter, 2 adults, 1 teenager, Southwest Water which is one of the most expensive, soakaway (instead of mains drainage) for rainwater, so it would be even more without.

Meter is generally always cheaper than the alternative. I'd want one in your situation.

Our 3 bed seni was £47.50 on a meter with 1 more child.

Were 2a 2c on a metre and pay 55 a month

That baby will grow and possibly have more siblings. Your water use will definitely go up. I’d stick with your current payments

We pay £77 a month which I think is reasonable for a family of 4.

That covers at least 5 showers a day (often more depending on gym visits and sports), dishwasher on once a day, an average of 1.5 loads of laundry per day, watering the garden and a teen who washes his car weekly.

That sounds about right as will be based off rateable value. If you go onto discoverwater you can see the average water/sewage for all different water companies. I would recommend you get a meter fitted as they have suggested if you want more control over how much you use/spend. Also water bills will be increasing as the water/sewage networks are in a dire condition

You do know you aren’t just paying for the water you use?

Ours was high which I just accepted for ages (96£ I think) and when I queried it it turned out we did have a water meter but it hadn’t been activated. We then got 18 months free of charge.

Just get the meter.

It will also be for drainage too (unless you have a septic tank).

I would love ours to be that low. Ours is £82 a month with no meter for a 3 bed house. Lowest council tax band too

Everyone should have a water meter. It’s impossible to guess how much a family would use, everyone is different!

It will be based on the old style rateable value which was fixed by the government/water supplier. If you disagree then your only option is to get a water meter fitted. Or move.

Just think of all that infrastructure that needs replacing! We need better water quality and better sewerage systems. Of course it’s reasonable and probably should be more!

We pay £29 a month on a water meter for a family of 5 in a three bedroom house

We pay around £67 a month and that's fixed rate ( no meter). there are 3 adults in the household. Water rates aren't something you negotiate so I'm not surprised they aren't budging !

I pay 48 a month. Three of us in a three bed house. No water meter as our water supply is linked to my neighbour's (or something) which means they can't install one. In the south east (Affinity water).

Ours is £75.50 a month 2 adults and a 5 year old, 3 bed semi. Used to be split between Anglian and Essex and Suffolk for clean/waste so I thought two sets of overheads admin costs etc made it expensive, it's combined now, one provider and more expensive than it was last year

This is so true. I think our water bills are cheaper than any mentioned here but I'd pay three times as much if they guaranteed no more sewage being dumped into the sea, it's so depressing.

I pay £47 a month on a meter. 5 bed house, 7 people with SWW, so that would seem a lot to me.

Where are you? Which water company? It makes a huge difference.

We're two adults with South West Water on a water meter and we pay £57/month!

I pay around that and it's just two of us. And I have a water meter.

We pay £33 per month on a water meter for 2 adults 2 kids in Greater London

That’s similar to what we pay - two adults and two small children.