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Tackling leaks and reducing your bills

Getting smart with your water usage

We’ve started work on an exciting initiative to help us reduce leaks across the North West AND lower your bills.

As the water company for the North West, it’s really important that we have a greater insight into how much water our customers are using so we can better plan for the future and identify leaks. 

That’s why we’re installing 1 million smart meters across the North West between 2025-2030.

We’re installing these meters on our water pipes in the public footpath, so we won’t need to enter your home to do this work. We’ll get in touch with you to confirm when we plan to carry out this work in your area.

Our new meters are smart enabled and use the latest technology to send readings to us on a more regular basis.

This means that, in the future, we’ll also be able to send updates to you about your water use and provide hints and tips to help you lower your bills.

We will also be able to spot if your water usage suddenly increases, indicating you could have a leak. If this is the case, we’ll let you know about this and help you to find the leak.

The good news is that when we fit the new meters, we will start to compare the cost of the water you use against your existing rateable value bill and charge you whichever is the lowest amount. We call this our ‘lowest bill guarantee’. We’ve explained more about this below.

Further information on how we collect and use data from smart meters can be found here.

  • Once we’ve installed the meter, we’ll then be able to tell you if you would make a saving on your existing bills based on the amount of water you use.

    We know that many of our customers would be better off with a meter but are put off applying as they’re not sure if they would make a saving compared to their fixed bill.

    Now, every time we send a water bill we’ll show you what you would pay based on the amount of water you’ve used. We’ll compare this against your current fixed bill - and if you would have paid less with a meter then we’ll charge you the lower amount.

    We call this our ‘lowest bill guarantee’ and it means you won’t pay any more than you do at the moment and any savings you do make are yours to keep. It lasts for two years and at the end of that time you can either remain on your existing fixed bill or switch to water meter charges if you’ve made a saving.

    You’re under no obligation to switch to a meter and we will only ever recommend switching if you’ve made a saving over the two year period. And if you do decide to switch, we’ll give you another two years to see how much you save before deciding whether to keep the meter permanently. You’ve really got nothing to lose.

  • You’ll always be charged the lowest amount once we fit the meter. That’s because when we send you a bill we’ll start to show your existing fixed charge alongside what you would pay if your bill was based on the amount of water you use. And if your meter charges are lower, then we’ll reduce your bill automatically!

    Our lowest bill guarantee lasts for two years – at the end of that time you can either keep your existing fixed bill or ask us to switch you to water meter charges. We’ll only ever recommend you switch to a meter if you have made a saving over the two year period. And if you do decide to switch after the initial two year trial, we’ll extend the lowest bill guarantee for a further two years!

    Here’s an example of how the lowest bill guarantee works:

    If your fixed bill is £400 but you meter reads £300, you would be charged the £300. If your meter instead reads £500 you would instead be continue to pay your £400 fixed rate.

  • Before your new water meter arrives, why not make sure your home isn’t wasting any water so you can try and reduce your bills even further?

    Making small changes to how you use water in the home can make a big difference to your household bills.

    When we fit your new meter, we will start to compare the cost of the water you use against your existing fixed bill and charge you whichever is the lowest amount. So getting clever with your water use might help to reduce your water bills even further.

    What’s more it can help you save money on your energy bills too. That’s because a lot of water we use in the home is heated - such as washing machines, showers, dishwashers and baths. So reducing the amount of hot water that is wasted in the home will help to reduce your gas and electricity bills too.

    Just visit our save water page for lots of hints and tips on how to save water in the home and garden.

Benefits of smart meters

Customer using iPad

The lowest bill – guaranteed!

When we first install your meter you will also benefit from our lowest bill guarantee. This means that for the first two years, we guarantee that if your charges with a meter are higher than you would have paid on rateable value, then we will charge you the lower amount! This takes away any risk and allows you to see if you would be better off with a meter before deciding whether to stay on meter charges permanently. You can’t lose!

Customer using water

Helping you to make savings on your bill

Installing smart meters across the North West will give us a much better understanding of how much water our customers are using. In the future, once we’ve updated our systems, we’ll also be able to share your water usage data with you, enabling you to see how much water you are using and offering advice on how to make savings and ultimately reduce your bill.

United Utilities water engineers

Tackling leakage

We're working hard to further reduce our leakage. Smart meters will give us a much greater understanding of how our customers are using water and help us to locate leaks much quicker. As smart meters will send readings to us on a regular basis, we will be able to spot if your usage suddenly increases, or you are using a continuous amount of water throughout the day and night which is normally a sign you have a leak. We can then get in touch with you about this so you can find the leak so you’re not paying for water that is going to waste.

Reservoir image

Caring for the environment

Smart meters will support us in managing our resources, reducing leakage and water use and protecting water resources for the future.