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Water company overcharging – Has your company been overcharged?
Author: Graham Mann, Water Audit Expert.
We may have all been there, you have purchased an item your bank statement arrives through the post and you realise you have been overcharged, what do you do? – ask for your money back of course, the result you get a refund and most of the time an apology.
But what if your business has completed a water audit and you discover the water company have been overcharging you for say the last 15 years. You submit a claim of course then you get a refund and an apology right? WRONG! get ready for the long haul and a barrage of excuses!
But hey, you have to start somewhere, well you could employ a water audit expert (guess I would say that wouldn’t I) no seriously if its a clear cut case great away you go, if not my advice is get expert advice if the claim is complex which will mean less grief for you and likely a better financial reward.
Time limits for claims: – claiming a refund due to a water company overcharge further back than 6 years is very often resisted by water companies. Back charge refunds are often 6 years, the financial services ombudsman says there is no time limit on how far back claims can be made, if your business has been overcharged on water bills 16 years then claim back the full term.
Complaints procedure: – If you have already made a claim against your water company about your water bill overcharges and you are still not satisfied then you will need to file an official complaint and please make sure in your email that you put the word COMPLAINT in the subject line and the actual body of the email along with the account details and the site address and send the complaint to the Customer Services Director.
Water company regulations: – If a senior member of staff has reviewed your water bill overcharge and you are still not satisfied then the next stage is to contact the Consumer Council for Water at www.ccwater.org.uk they are an independent representative body for household and business water consumers in England and Wales, for Scotland go to www.spso.org.uk they will investigate complaints and are free to use.
TIP: – If all else fails you can take the water company to court or google search – water company overcharging – water bill rebate.