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Just relocated and scratching your head about your water supplier?
You’re not alone! Water suppliers have a knack for sending invoices just once a year. If you don’t have one handy, you’re left in the dark.
So, who will you call if you have water supply issues? Don’t wait until your main pipe bursts to scramble for an answer — find out who is your water supply NOW!
Who is my water supplier is a simple question, but the answer can be more complicated than you think.
British homes are supplied by their local water company, which also operates the local water infrastructure. Confusingly, the company that manages the water network can be different to the water company that manages the wastewater network.
If your property isn’t a home, the situation is even more confusing. Non-household properties are supplied by a business water suppliers that are nothing to do with the local water companies that manage water infrastructure.
Here’s our quick list of ways to determine your water supplier, starting with the easiest.
Check the name of the company that invoices you for water and wastewater services. Regardless of whether you are a home, business or something else, your water supplier will be the company that sends you bills and asks for money.
Alternatively (if your invoicing is not well-organised or hard to access), you may have a direct debit set up to pay this water supplier monthly, revealing their identity.
Suppose you’ve never received an invoice for your water. In that case, fill out our simple questionnaire, and we can look up your address in the central water database. Our experts will drop you an email with the answer.
A water company is an organisation that owns and operates the water and sewerage networks in a particular region of the country. They are responsible for the supply of clean water and the removal, treatment and cleaning of wastewater. These local water companies provide supplier services to the homes in their region.
In contrast, a business water supplier provides customer services and invoicing to its business customers, as well as takes meter readings at your property. They are the bridge between customers and the local water company and will liaise with them on your behalf in case of any problems.
The flowchart below summarises this information:
Businesses with properties across the country often find that several different water suppliers are billing them. This situation creates unnecessary work for your accounts payable team and makes it difficult to understand and analyse your water costs. But why does it happen?
Upon deregulation of the water market in April 2017, the supply of water services was transferred from the local water company to the default business water supplier for that region. So, if your business has lots of different properties, you may be billed by lots of different water suppliers.
If you want to find out who supplies water to each of your properties and your bookkeeping is organised, you can quickly find this information in your invoices or direct debits.
Consolidating water suppliers
Trust us when we say that keeping on top of multiple suppliers across multiple properties can be a headache for your business. Complicated invoicing, confusing customer services and billing– the issues rapidly spread from accounting to maintenance.
The solution to this is to consolidate the supply of water and wastewater to your business, meaning you’ll receive just one bill each month and have to deal with only one customer services department. Our water experts are here to help with this process. Simply enter your details on our business water comparison page.
That’s a wrap for finding who your water supplier is! Now, onto answering some of the frequently asked questions we get asked straight after.
This is a common problem. The central database used in the non-household water network is often out-of-date with the status of business properties. If the principal use of your property is anything but a home, then you will be eligible to be supplied by a business water supplier.
We recommend that you contact a business water supplier of your choosing who will be able to onboard you as a new customer and manage the addition of your property to the non-household water network.
However, it could be best to do nothing as domestic water rates are generally cheaper than business water rates.
This situation is known as a ‘gap site’. It’s a common problem in the water industry, and our gap site guide explains how best to deal with this situation.
Non-domestic water is a deregulated market; you are free to choose from competing suppliers. To compare the alternative deals available to your business, use the AquaSwitch free business water comparison service today.
In the domestic water market, you cannot change water suppliers.
Yes, when you apply to switch business water suppliers, your new supplier will perform a credit check on your business. Business water suppliers take on the risk that any new customer will not pay their bills. If your company has a poor credit rating, you may be denied access to the cheapest tariffs.
See the AquaSwitch guide to business credit ratings.