Holiday let properties are charged two sets of charges for their business water meter. The charges will be broken down into volumetric charges and standing charges.

Volumetric Charges – This is the charge for the usage of your water and wastewater. The more water your holiday let uses in a year, the higher the cost. If you have a lower water usage in a year, on the other hand, the cost will be lower. It’s that simple. Your unit rates will vary depending on where your business is located in England or Scotland and what water rates you are being billed for by your current water supplier.

For example, if your unit rate per m3 is £1.23 and you use 135m3 per year, then your cost for water for the year would be £166.05.

£1.23m3 x 135m3 = £166.05

Standing Charges – Depending on where in England and Scotland your holiday let is, you will have different standing charges on your account. These can consist of water standing charges, waste standing charges, highways drainage charges, surface drainage charges, and retail charges. On your invoices, these business water rates could be charged as a pence per day, pounds per month, or charged in a block for the period that you are being invoiced for.

For example, if your total standing charges came to £284.70 per year, you could be invoiced as follows:

£0.78 pence per day x 365 days = £284.70

If you think you might be paying too much for your business water, that’s where we can help at The Business Water Shop. An excellent way to get more clarity on your situation is with a detailed business water audit – you can find out more information in the link below.

Book a Business Water Audit Today

VAT on water invoices on holiday lets

VAT on for water bills on holiday lets should be charged at 0%. If you believe that you have been overcharged for VAT on your water invoices then either call us on 020 8051 7675 or email us at contact@thebusinesswatershop.co.uk, and one of our team will be able to help you.

There are many options available for increasing water efficiency. The easiest to apply to your business would be:

Tap aerators – these effectively limit the flow of water on your tap, making them useful for effectively lowering usage. This is a simple device that clips onto the end of your tap, making it therefore very simple to install.

Save-a-Flush bag – this is a polyethylene bag that is placed in the toilet cistern. It’s filled with pellets that absorb water, which can help to limit the amount of water that would otherwise be wasted by flushing away.

Check for leaks – if you have a water meter, then we’d recommend taking weekly readings to ensure you don’t have any leaks. If your usage is abnormally high for one week, then it is likely there is a leak. If you can identify it early, that can help prevent you from wasting money moving forward. The sooner the leak is detected, the better.

Upgrade your appliances – old or poorly maintained appliances can be major culprits for wasting both water and energy. That means replacing them with energy-efficient models can help to cut running costs, especially those with A-ratings. If replacement isn’t a viable option for whatever reason, regular servicing and checking seals can help too.

Install smart technology – smart thermostats give you the ability to control heating remotely and adjust settings automatically to save energy. Smart plugs and motion sensors can also help to reduce unnecessary appliance and lighting use, while smart meters are handy for providing real-time usage data.

Changing water supplier has many benefits. The key ones include:

Saving money. If you have yet to change water suppliers, then you’re likely to be paying the default tariff. This could be a considerable amount more than you could be paying by switching your business water supplier.

Improved customer service. You can often benefit from better customer service when you switch providers. If you find yourself waiting a long time on the phone trying to speak to your supplier, for example, or if yours is slow to respond to leaks, then it may be worth considering a switch. You may also be able to enjoy new tailored services that you don’t currently have access to. 

Billing. You may want to change the way you pay for your business water. Changing suppliers can enable you to pay by direct debit, or by bank transfer on the invoice. Billing varies throughout the industry as some would request the money a year upfront and others would offer monthly in arrears.

If your business doesn’t have a water meter, but you do use water at your business premises, then you’re likely to be charged based on the rateable value of your property. This will be an unmeasured tariff.

You should usually expect to have a fixed charge every month for the year. However, on the 1^st of April each year, water wholesalers tend to review their prices. These price changes can then be passed on to the end consumer. This applies to the whole of the water market for both measured and unmeasured tariffs.

So, it’s a good idea to make sure your business is on competitive water rates for your unmeasured tariff by comparing water prices from around the business water market.