No really gend up on this.
Can a person who is paying more water rates (than the same house across the
road with two bedrooms) be able to get a rateable value assesment on their
property?

friend is paying 21.00 a month, whilst tenant across the road is paying
15.50 for the same circumstances housewise, except friends house is in
poorer condition than the one across the road.

The ofwat site below says...

Can I appeal if I think my rateable value is too high?

No!

Surely this cant be the case when a house the same cubic size and 2
bedrooms.
http://www.ofwat.gov.uk/aptrix/ofwat/publish.nsf/Content/info47

Anyone have any views on this?

Thanks.

ben wrote:

> No really gend up on this.
> Can a person who is paying more water rates (than the same house across the
> road with two bedrooms) be able to get a rateable value assesment on their
> property?
> 
> friend is paying 21.00 a month, whilst tenant across the road is paying
> 15.50 for the same circumstances housewise, except friends house is in
> poorer condition than the one across the road.
> 
> The ofwat site below says...
> 
> Can I appeal if I think my rateable value is too high?
> 
> No!
> 
> Surely this cant be the case when a house the same cubic size and 2
> bedrooms.
> http://www.ofwat.gov.uk/aptrix/ofwat/publish.nsf/Content/info47
> 
> Anyone have any views on this?
> 
> Thanks.
> 
> 

I think the only thing you can do is ask the water company to install a 
meter. It may be the place opposite has a meter...

> friend is paying 21.00 a month, whilst tenant across the road is paying
> 15.50 for the same circumstances housewise, except friends house is in
> poorer condition than the one across the road.


If friend doesn't use hosepipes, he'll probably be better off installing a
water meter, especially if friend lives alone and likes showers.

Christian.

Ian Cornish" <"icornish at talk21 dot com wrote:

> ben wrote:
>> No really gend up on this.
>> Can a person who is paying more water rates (than the same house
>> across the road with two bedrooms) be able to get a rateable value
>> assesment on their property?
>>
>> friend is paying 21.00 a month, whilst tenant across the road is
>> paying 15.50 for the same circumstances housewise, except friends
>> house is in poorer condition than the one across the road.
>>
>> The ofwat site below says...
>>
>> Can I appeal if I think my rateable value is too high?
>>
>> No!
>>
>> Surely this cant be the case when a house the same cubic size and 2
>> bedrooms.
>> http://www.ofwat.gov.uk/aptrix/ofwat/publish.nsf/Content/info47
>>
>> Anyone have any views on this?
>>
>> Thanks.
>>
>>
> I think the only thing you can do is ask the water company to install
> a meter. It may be the place opposite has a meter...


Hi
Ian its not about meters or not, its about the property is almost identical
except for condition.
Another site states the ratable value of a property is based on a few
factors i.e size,bedrooms,condition (band A) so if his house is worth
35000 and the house across the road is 40000 how the hell can they pay 5
less in water rates than the person who's house is 5000 lower.?

On Tue, 06 Sep 2005 14:33:47 GMT, ben wrote:


> No really gend up on this.
> Can a person who is paying more water rates (than the same house across the
> road with two bedrooms) be able to get a rateable value assesment on their
> property?
> 
> friend is paying 21.00 a month, whilst tenant across the road is paying
> 15.50 for the same circumstances housewise, except friends house is in
> poorer condition than the one across the road.
> 
> The ofwat site below says...
> 
> Can I appeal if I think my rateable value is too high?
> 
> No!
> 
> Surely this cant be the case when a house the same cubic size and 2
> bedrooms.
> http://www.ofwat.gov.uk/aptrix/ofwat/publish.nsf/Content/info47
> 
> Anyone have any views on this?


The water charges are based on the rateable value. You don't have a case to
appeal against the water company, what you need to do is appeal against the
rateable value with the Local Authority.

-- 
the dot wanderer at tesco dot net

Christian McArdle wrote:

>> friend is paying 21.00 a month, whilst tenant across the road is
>> paying 15.50 for the same circumstances housewise, except friends
>> house is in poorer condition than the one across the road.
>
> If friend doesn't use hosepipes, he'll probably be better off
> installing a water meter, especially if friend lives alone and likes
> showers.
>
> Christian.


Meter is not an option here, sorry should have stated this.
And no meter is installed across the road.

> Ian its not about meters or not, its about the property is almost
identical
> except for condition.
> Another site states the ratable value of a property is based on a few
> factors i.e size,bedrooms,condition (band A) so if his house is worth
> 35000 and the house across the road is 40000 how the hell can they pay
5
> less in water rates than the person who's house is 5000 lower.?


You may recall that when they abolished the rates, they were considered
completely unfair, with loads of anomalies. Now add the fact that no changes
or appeals have been allowed since 1990, and they're not going to have got
any fairer.

As far as the water companies are concerned, if you want a fair system, then
you should ask for a meter. That, de facto, is the appeal procedure.

Christian.

> Meter is not an option here, sorry should have stated this.


Why is meter not an option?

Christian.

In an earlier contribution to this discussion,
The Wanderer   wrote:


>
> The water charges are based on the rateable value. You don't have a
> case to appeal against the water company, what you need to do is
> appeal against the rateable value with the Local Authority.


There are two parallel systems in force for charging water rates - metered
and unmetered.

Metered depends purely on how much you use - and is often the best bet
unless you are a heavy user. The OP seems to think that having a meter is
not an option in the case cited. WHY?

Unnetered depends on the Rateable Value of the property. RV is what used to
be used for assessing Rates before the days of Council Tax and its related
Bands. RV is used *solely* for unmetered water rates these days - and new
properties are not given an RV. You would have to dig through the archives
to find out why two similar properties in the same road were given different
RVs - and I very much doubt whether there's any way of appealing so long
after the event.
-- 
Cheers,
Set Square
______
Please reply to newsgroup. Reply address is invalid.

Christian McArdle wrote:

>> Meter is not an option here, sorry should have stated this.
>
> Why is meter not an option?
>
> Christian.


Simple, landlord won't permit it. :-)

>> Why is meter not an option?
>
> Simple, landlord won't permit it. :-)


Then there's bugger all you can do!

Christian.

ben wrote:

>>Why is meter not an option?
> Simple, landlord won't permit it. :-)


If it's the tenant who pays the utility bills it's hard to see how the 
landlord can object to the tenant being able to minimise the cost of 
those utilities.

Tenancy agreements are subject to the Unfair Contract Terms Act; not 
allowing someone to have a utility meter is probably unfair.

Owain

"Owain"  wrote in message 
news:1126028536.13903.3@sabbath.news.uk.clara.net...

> ben wrote:
>>>Why is meter not an option?
>> Simple, landlord won't permit it. :-)
>
> If it's the tenant who pays the utility bills it's hard to see how the 
> landlord can object to the tenant being able to minimise the cost of those 
> utilities.
>
> Tenancy agreements are subject to the Unfair Contract Terms Act; not 
> allowing someone to have a utility meter is probably unfair.


I know of a tenant who laid a new water pipe to his rented house and paid 
for it connecting up to to improve his water flow. The landlord was not 
asked by the water company or the tenant for permission. He just ticked the 
box on the form that said he was a tenant.

Adam