FAQs

60 per cent of our customers are already on metered charges. 

By 2025, we will provide water meters to all our customers that do not already have them. This will bring us into line with other water companies in our region.  

The South East of England is officially classed by the Government as being in ‘serious water stress’ - this means demand for water is higher than what’s available, at times. 

Climate change is affecting how much water is available for us to supply and it is predicted that droughts will become more common and severe.  

We need to plan to make sure there is enough water for all our customers and protect the environment, which provides our water supplies. 

Reducing the demand for water is an important part of how we will achieve this.  

Evidence shows that, on average, metered customers use 15 per cent less water. 

So metering is a cost effective and sustainable way to encourage people to use water more wisely and bring down overall demand. 

Many people see their water bill fall when they move to a meter, but for some it will increase. If you are worried about paying your bill, we can provide you with additional financial support. 

Please see our 'Moving to metered water bills' page for more information on when you will start paying for your water on metered charges. 

You can also visit our 'Helping you save water, energy and money' page for details of the practical advice and support we can provide to help you keep your bills affordable. 

It's important to understand that we have the legal right to install meters for our customers, under the Water Industry Act 1991 (amended in 1999). 

This is because we operate in an area that has been classed as water stressed by the Government and it has approved our plans to meter our customers.

Most of the new meters we will be fitting will be Elster V210 water meters, which are not smart, as with many modern electricity and gas meters that collect and send usage data on a continuous basis.

However, the Elster meters are fitted with an Automatic Meter Reading (AMR) function. This allows our water meter readers to collect the data needed without having to read the meter dial. They do this by using a handheld unit which receives a radio signal from the radio module on the water meter.

Our water meters are normally located outside properties at the boundary of the street. The radio modules do not emit a signal continuously or even at frequent intervals. The radio module is idle for most of the time and only transmits for a few seconds when the water meter is being read. This typically occurs once every six months. The radio module used is very low powered at 25 milliwatts and the signal rapidly decreases with the distance travelled. The average mobile phone emits two watts, which is 80 times more than the radio modules of the water meters.