A SAVVY mum-of-two has slashed her water bills by hundreds of pounds thanks to a meter fitted free of charge.
Bryony Lewis has not looked back since making the change in her five-bed home in Fareham, Hampshire, in 2021.
This was just a few weeks after the family moved in.
The money-saving whizz lives with her husband, Dan, 39, an engineer, their eight-year-old son, Theo, and six-year-old daughter, Izzy.
For the past six years, Bryony has run an e-commerce business, T & Belle, which creates and sells gifts and keepsakes for new mums and parents.
She told The Sun: “As soon as we exchanged contracts, I contacted our water company and booked in a meter installation.
“I knew our water bills would cost a fortune otherwise.”
It comes as already squeezed households budgets have got even worse due to what’s been dubbed as “awful April” – follow The Sun’s series for more.
The average water bill went up by £123, along other price increases.
This could mean annual costs of more than £600 (though prices will differ, depending on where you live).
Higher costs will make daily essentials such as showers, baths and washing machines even more expensive.
[bc_video account_id=”5067014667001″ application_id=”” aspect_ratio=”16:9″ autoplay=”” caption=”The bizarre reason my smart meter won’t work & I miss out on cheaper bills” embed=”in-page” experience_id=”” height=”100%” language_detection=”” max_height=”360px” max_width=”640px” min_width=”0px” mute=”” padding_top=”56%” picture_in_picture=”” player_id=”default” playlist_id=”” playsinline=”” sizing=”responsive” video_id=”6364540356112″ video_ids=”” width=”640px”]And be warned, this isn’t the end of hikes, as further rises are planned over the next five years, according to regulator Ofwat.
But while higher costs will make for worrying reading, there are ways to cut bills.
For Bryony, the meter was put in place completely for free by Portsmouth Water.
Bryony said: “It’s located on the path just outside our house. Getting it installed really didn’t involve much upheaval at all.”
[authenticated-scripts src=”%3Cscript%20class%3D%22palin-poll%22%20src%3D%22https%3A%2F%2Fwww.thesun.co.uk%2Fpollingwidgets%2Fv3%2Fwidget.js%3Fquestion_id%3D111246%26game%3Dpolling%22%3E%3C%2Fscript%3E” type=”embedded” width=”100″ /]If you live in a property without a meter, you get charged based on your estimated usage.
This is done in line with the size of your home – and what’s known as its “rateable value”.
By contrast, a meter actually measures how much water a household uses – enabling your supplier to take more accurate readings.
Once they’d got the device in place, the Lewis family went on to “metered charges”.
“Our yearly cost for the past 12 months was £372,” said Bryony.
“Had we been on unmetered rateable charges, I reckon this would have been closer to £600.”
Put another way, without a meter, the household would be paying around £50 a month for water.
But thanks to the device, monthly costs are dramatically reduced to around £31.
Bryony says she was surprised at just how much she’s been able to shave off her bills.
“The meter is saving us hundreds of pounds a year,” said the hard-working entrepreneur.
“We’re so much better off now we’re only paying for what we use.”
If you’re not sure whether or not you’d benefit from getting a meter installed, there’s a simple rule of thumb: if there are less people than bedrooms in your property, it’s worth giving a meter a try.
Say, for example, there are only two of you living in a four-bed house, there’s a good chance you’re being charged more than you actually use.
Just bear in mind that the specific saving will vary depending on your household’s usage – as well as your water company.
“We were keen to get a meter as our house has five bedrooms but only four people live here,” said Bryony.
“We currently use some as home office spaces, but they are still bedrooms. For us, it’s definitely cheaper on a meter.
“This is the case even despite the fact we run a small hot tub.”
For Bryony, the water meter brought great peace of mind.
She added: “With the device in place, the difference in cost is incredible.”
How to get a meter
While you can’t switch your water supplier, what you can do is try a meter.
First off you need to find out who supplies your water. You can do that here just by entering your postcode.
But before you do this, it’s worth checking to see if a water meter could potentially save you money.
A good starting point is the free, easy-to-use tool on the Consumer Council for Water website.
Alternatively, you can call your water company, and ask for its calculator.
It’s worth noting that even if you’re renting, you can have a meter installed – just as long as your lease is more than six months long.
For leases shorter than this, you will need to get your landlord’s permission to apply.
Either way, it’s wise to notify your landlord about the installation.
Helpfully, if you’re unhappy with the change (irrespective of whether you rent or own your property), you can switch back to the unmetered system any time within two years.
This means you get the chance to try a meter to see if it saves you money. If it doesn’t, you can revert back, at no cost to you.
If, for some reason, you can’t get one of these devices installed, your supplier may be able to put you on a cheaper tariff.
Many companies offer social tariffs and hardship schemes for low-income households.
The WaterSure scheme, for example, caps bills for households on certain benefits with high water usage (perhaps due to medical reasons, or because there are three or more school-age children living in the property).
Equally, if you’re in debt, or worried you might fall behind on your payments, you need to get in touch with your water company at the earliest opportunity.
You will usually find there’s a scheme to help customers clear outstanding debts.
Get your hands on a water-saving gadget
While you’re thinking about your water bills, why not try out some of the wide range of gadgets and gizmos which can help lower your costs.
This includes the likes of shower heads, shower-timers, tap inserts and ‘hippos’ or buffalo bags which go in the toilet cistern and mean you use less water each time you flush.
Many water companies offer such devices for free. Find out more at Savewatersavemoney.co.uk.
At the same time, be sure to keep an eye out for leaks, as even a dripping tap can waste a significant amount of water over time, bumping up your bill.