Spread the cost of your water bill
You can spread the cost of your water bill be setting up a payment plan.
How and when you're billed
How and when you receive your water bill will change depending on whether you have a water meter or not.
Bills for customers with a water meter
If you have a water meter, we will usually take a reading from your water meter every six months. Each time we take a meter reading, we’ll send you a bill for the water you’ve used.
You can choose to pay the bill in full, or you can spread the cost of the bill over time by setting up a payment plan.
You can set up a payment plan at any time. You don’t have to wait until a new bill is issued.
The payment plan will cover the cost of your current bill and the future charges for your next bill, so you’re always building up credit on your account and won’t go into debt when the next bill is issued.
Bills for customers without a water meter
If you don’t have a water meter, we’ll send you an annual bill between February and March.
The amount you are billed for is due to be paid by 1 April the same year.
You can choose to pay the bill in full when you receive it, or you can set up a payment plan to pay it in instalments.
If you don’t have a water meter it’s likely that you’re billed according to your property’s Rateable Value.
Payment plans are available to all customers
Our payment plans are available to all customers.
You don’t have to meet any eligibility criteria to set up a standard payment plan. Just choose how you’d like to pay your bill, and how often you’d like to make payments.
Choose how you want to pay your bill
You can pay your bill in several different ways. You can choose a regular payment method that suits you, including payments by:
- Direct Debit
- Standing order
- Debit or credit card
- Watercard at a PayPoint store
The important thing is that you choose the right payment method for your needs.
Pay by Direct Debit
A Direct Debit payment is often the simplest way to pay your bill.
It can help to spread the cost over a year in regular, manageable amounts. You can choose to pay your bill by Direct Debit on a payment schedule that suits you, including fortnightly, four-weekly, or monthly Direct Debits.
Because the payments are automatically taken from your bank account, once it's set up you never have to worry about remembering to pay again.
All payments are secure, and backed by the Direct Debit guarantee.
Choose when you make your regular payments
You can choose when you’d like to make payments, so you’re able to break your bill up into manageable chunks that you pay at regular intervals.
You can choose to make regular payments in a way that suits you.
You can choose to make payments every:
- month
- four weeks
- two weeks
- week (non-Direct Debit payment plans only)
If you’re not on a water meter, you can spread the cost of your bill across 8 to 12 months, depending on your preference.
If you pay over 8 months, your regular payments will be higher, but you’ll have four months a year where you pay nothing.
If you split the cost of the bill over 12 months, you’ll pay less each month, but you’ll make a payment every month.
Whichever duration of payment plan you choose, you’ll still pay the same total amount.You can choose the length of the payment plan to suit you.
You’ll remain on your chosen payment plan frequency until you choose to change the regularity of your payments or change your payment method altogether.
If you’re on a water meter, your payment plan will always be fixed at a 12-month period.
We'll calculate your regular payment amount
The amount you pay each time you make a payment will be calculated in one of two ways.
Calculating your payments if you have a water meter
If you’re on a water meter, the total amount billed for the year will be estimated based on your previous use. That figure will then be split equally between the months you’d like to make your payments.
If you’ve only recently moved into your home, we’ll work with you to calculate your use based on your estimates of whether you’re a high or low user of water as a household.
Once we have a first meter reading, we’ll be able to start using that information to calculate your bills in the future.
Calculating your payments if you don't have a water meter
If you’re not on a water meter, your bill will be calculated using either the Rateable Value of your property or what we call an Assessed Charge.
Rateable Value charges
If you don’t have a meter, it’s most likely that you’re billed using your property’s Rateable Value.
Rateable Value is a fixed amount, assessed and set by the District Valuer’s office of the Inland Revenue between 1963 and 1990. Each property built before 1990 has a Rateable Value.
Your Rateable Value cannot be changed or reassessed.
You could save if you install a water meter
If you’re billed by Rateable Value, you could be paying more than you need to for your water.
For example, if you’re a mature couple and your children have left home, you may still live in a house big enough for a family of four.
The Rateable Value of that home will have been assessed before 1990 on the assumption that it would be used by a family, and you’ll be billed on that basis.
However, with just two of you now living there, you’ll likely be using much less water than a family of four would.
In this situation, you might be able to save money on your bill if you install a water meter as you’ll only be billed for the water you use.
Assessed charges
If you’ve applied for a water meter but been unable to have one fitted at your home, you’ll be put on an Assessed Charge.
This is a set figure, based on the average water use of a household that matches your own.
For example, if you’re a family of four in a three-bedroom semi-detached home, your bill amount will be calculated based on the average figures we have for another household of that type.
Set up a payment plan
You can log in to your account and set up a payment plan or you can get in touch with our customer care team to discuss your options.
Credit on your account
If you’re on a water meter, you will see your account is in credit at times throughout the payment plan. This is because you make payments in advance of your annual bill being generated and due.
Your monthly payment may build credit on your account, which is then used to pay your bill when it is due in April.
If you’re not on a water meter, your payment plan will begin when you bill is created, and so you pay off the amount of the bill steadily over the time you have selected.
Altering your plan if your circumstances change
You can reduce your instalments if your circumstances change and you can no longer afford your regular payments.
You would then pay any remaining amount in full at the time the bill is due, if you’re able to.
If you’re unable to pay your bill and you have outstanding debt on your account, we can work with you to create a bespoke payment plan you can afford that will help you pay-off what you owe and pay towards your current bill.
Help when you need it
We never want you to feel stressed or worried about paying your water bill. If you need financial support, please talk to us.
There are several ways we can help you to pay your bill, including;
- WaterSure Scheme
- Here2Help
- Single occupancy tariff