If you are having trouble paying your water bill, there are things which can be done to help you.
First of all, contact your water company and tell them. They have schemes available which may help, such as spreading the payments monthly or weekly, instead of paying it all in one go. If you are already in arrears, your water company may have discretionary funds in a trust which may be able to pay off part of your debt, if you qualify.
If you are in receipt of certain benefits, under the Water Direct scheme, it can be arranged to have a fixed amount deducted from your payment until the arrears are cleared. Contact either your water company or the benefits agency to arrange this.
For people with water meters there is a scheme called WaterSure, which caps your water bill at the average for your area, so you do not need to worry about how high it is going. To qualify for this scheme, you have to be in receipt of benefits and have either three children under the age of 19, or a member of your household has a medical condition which increases the amount to water used. Your water company should be your point of contact.
If you don’t have your water company’s details to hand, click here to visit the Consumer Council for Water’s website. CCWater also have a freephone number – 0845 039 2837.
 19/04/11