You can easily find out if your home has a water meter by looking at your bill.

• If your customer reference number starts with MC then you have a water meter.
• If your customer reference starts with a UC then you do not have a meter.

As a rule, if you live in a property that was built after 1990 it's likely there will be a meter.

Water meter locations

If your home has a water meter fitted then it’s good to know where it's located.

Once you know where your meter is, you'll be able to take meter readings regularly. This will help you keep track of how much water you're using so you can monitor your bills and spot possible leaks.

Water meters can be fitted:

• Near the outside stop tap which can normally be found in the public footpath or verge - close to the boundary of your home. Look for a small metal or black plastic cover in the ground, or  
• Inside your home, usually under a sink, depending on where the water supply pipe comes into the house.

Sometimes it's not possible to install a meter outside. This is usually because the supply pipe is shared with other properties. In these circumstances, we'll carry out a survey to see if we can fit the meter inside, where the supply pipe first enters your property, such as under the kitchen sink or in the garage.

If you think you have a meter, but can’t find it please contact us.

Typical meter locations

Outside meters

• It’s likely to be near our main outside stop tap which can normally be found in the public footpath or verge - close to the boundary of your property
• It’ll be located under a small metal or black plastic cover in the ground. You might need a screwdriver to lift the lid.
• You may find a polystyrene cover in the box; this is to protect our stop tap and meter from frost
• If you share a supply with your neighbour you may find our meter has been fitted on your property – it’ll be under a cover in the ground similar to the ones in the footpath

Inside meters

• It’s likely to be right by where the water enters your property and where your inside stop tap is
• Check under your kitchen sink
• Check in a downstairs toilet
• Check in the garage

Want to move your water meter?
Moving your water meter isn’t standard DIY and it is illegal to tamper with a water meter, so make sure you speak to us if you want to move it. We will carry out all the necessary checks to make sure everything is working as it should. 

If you have an internal meter and you would like it moved within your property, you can either ask us to move it, or arrange for a water industry approved plumber to carry out the work. We will then need to inspect the work .

For all other meter location moves, we will need to carry out the work. We will initially carry out a survey, to assess where the meter can be relocated to.

For more information, read our water meter relocation policy.