I am of the opinion that every business pays too much for their water, or rather, every business that doesn’t take the time to understand their water pays too much for their water.
Not looking after how a business uses water, minimises usage, and addresses wastewater is akin to throwing money down the drain; something no respectable business will want to see happen.
So why would a business want to make things difficult by switching a water supplier? Truth be told, it isn’t at all. For anyone reading this who is looking after water bills for their business, here are some of the reasons why a business would switch theirwater supplier, and why this may be the time for you to do similarly.
Getting what you pay for
Do you know if your meter is measuring water to the drop and automatically sending figures to your supplier? Do you even know where your business’s water meter is and what type of meter you have? Getting to know your meter, and in turn, what you’re paying for in your bills every month, is the first step to optimising what you pay for.
When water pumps are usually tucked away in the corner, there’s an out of sight, out of mind approach that is most often taken by businesses. If your business is on a property value tariff, there’s a good chance you’re paying too much. If your business is using an older meter (i.e. it doesn’t digitally keep track of usage), again, there’s a good chance you’re paying too much.
Get to know your meter and your tariff will let you know if you’re rightly getting what you pay for. If your current supplier states or refuses to help upgrade meters, then it isn’t in your best interest to remain a customer.
Knowing that transitions should be easy
Water is an essential service for any business, so why would you want to disrupt your water for the sake of moving suppliers? That’s a common misconception in the UK that just isn’t true. The water your business uses will always be from a network operated by the local regulator. You may be a business customer of theirs by default, but the reality is that we have an open water market, that gives you the freedom to move to another provider, in the same manner, you would your electric or internet supplier. And while switching internet supplier can sometimes see a business going offline for a few days, that doesn’t happen with water, as nothing in your supply changes/ is interrupted.
Castle Water is one such example of a water retailer helping take care of the switching process so you can get on with running things unencumbered. For anyone in the UK who is thinking of making a move, I recommend reading more about switching to Castle Water.
Paying for what you waste (and don’t waste)
Remember what I said at the beginning about throwing money down the drain? Well, if your wastewater levels aren’t measured or tracked correctly, and your business hasn’t been shown the means to reduce effluent & find ways to recycle water, you’re going to be paying more than you should to get rid of dirty water.
I am a big believer in water recycling wherever possible. Having the means to clean up and treat greywater on-site lowers waste costs in your bills, and with less water entering your system, you will see a drop in the cost of water used. Again, this is something you’ll want to talk with your water supplier about. Any good company will either provide waste management services or have partners in the area to help with requests.
These are just a handful of ways to understand why a business would switch suppliers. Even if it isn’t a high priority for you, I would recommend taking the time to go through your next water bill line by line to see if it all makes sense. If it doesn’t, contact your supplier and start asking questions.
