V_Marie

Over the last year I've been through a bloody nightmare with @SouthWestWater They claimed I owed almost £4,000, increased my monthly Direct Debit from £41.50 to £448.50, took £1,794 from my bank account over four months, and sent repeated, agresisve, final demands and debt recovery letters. The entire dispute centred on a meter reading they claimed had been taken in December 2024. There was just one problem... By then, I had built a large fence around my property, which completely blocked access to the meter. I had proudly documented the build on Facebook, complete with dates and photographs, so I was able to show that they could not have accessed it in the way they claimed - or, they had illegally accessed my property. They had to pick a lane. Even more strangely, if that December 2024 reading really had shown such enormous usage, why did they continue charging me £41.50 a month for another seven months? Why wasn't my Direct Debit increased until July 2025, when it suddenly jumped to £448.50 a month? After months of emails, evidence, meter photographs, bank statements and with the help of the Consumer Council for Water (CCW), South West Water eventually accepted they couldn't explain or verify the disputed meter reading. They were forced to refund me £589.93, withdrew the recovery action and paid compensation. Yet despite all of that, I'm now having to question another bill for £92.55, even though my current meter readings suggest my monthly usage is much lower. I've asked them to explain exactly how they've calculated it, but they have so far refused. My advice to anyone with a disputed water bill: 📸 Photograph your meter regularly. 📅 Keep a record of every reading. 📂 Save every bill, email and bank statement. 📝 Challenge anything that doesn't add up and ask for a full calculation. ⚖️ If you're getting nowhere, escalate it to the Consumer Council for Water @CCWvoice . They made all the difference in my case. They were absolutely amazing. And here's the question that really bothers me... How many elderly people, vulnerable people, or simply busy people who don't obsessively keep records, photographs and evidence have received bills like this, panicked, and paid because they assumed the water company must be right and some heavies were going to kick their doors in? If you've had a similar experience with South West Water, unexplained meter readings, huge bill increases, debt recovery while a dispute was ongoing, or months of trying to get answers, I'd really like to hear from you. Please share your experience below. If this has happened to more than just me, people deserve to know.