How to read a metered bill

Need help reading your metered bill? See a full breakdown of one below to find out what each section means.


An example of a metered water bill showing amount due and your payment plan

Customer number

Your customer number is a unique number that has been assigned to your account. You may need to quote this number if you call us or submit a form online.​

Payment reference

If you want to make a payment online or by phone, you will need to quote this number to ensure the payment is allocated to your account. Direct Debit customers will need to quote it if they want to make an ad hoc payment.

Total due

This is your balance at the end of the billing period. If your balance has ‘CR’ after it, you are in credit. If this amount is over £50 at the end of the billing period, we will fully refund it. Anything below £50 will roll over to the next billing period. A negative balance means you owe that amount. Please contact us to discuss this.

Your payment plan

If you pay by Direct Debit, your payment plan will show your next and future payments throughout the billing period. If you don’t pay this way, it will show the total amount due for the billing period and your options to pay it.

Payment amounts

We may adjust how much you pay based on your usage, the balance on your account, and any changes to our charges.

Example of a metered water bill showing total

Account summary

This section shows your previous balance and total payments made to date. This is used to calculate the amount brought forward, which will act as credit for your next bill.

Daily water usage

This section shows your average daily usage per day in litres in comparison to your previous bill and the same period last year.

Water use

Your water use is calculated by working out the difference between your previous meter reading and your most recent reading, showing you the total cubic meters used for that billing period.

Total

This figure is calculated based on your water usage multiplied by our water and sewerage charges, plus our standing charge.

Example of a metered water bill account statement

Detailed account statement

This table shows a detailed breakdown of the payments you have made since your last bill.

Save water to save money

Customers with a meter can save money by making a few small changes to their water usage habits.

Help to pay your bill

If you need help paying, we may be able to support you through one of our schemes or tariffs.