How to reduce your water and wastewater costs in Care Homes
Water the forgotten Utility
Water is the forgotten utility, and to be honest Energy is at the top of the care Industry list.
Why?
Cost and price volatility.
Never a week goes by that energy prices are not making media headlines.
There will be many businesses in the care sector grappling with the ever increasing but seldom decreasing energy prices.
So what about water?
I talk to many businesses inside and outside the care sector who have not even looked at their water and wastewater bills, strange but true!
In the general order of things water is rarely discussed, until there are pressure problems, or the taps run dry due to water leaks and leak repairs or water pipe renewals in the road and the usual interruptions to supply.
In short, we take water for granted and don’t see the value of it, that is until the taps run dry!
Water is life, try running a care facility without water for longer than an hour.
Water and wastewater services are cheap right?
Yes in years gone by pre-water market deregulation water was cheap, then along came water market deregulation 1st April 2017 in the English water market, in Scotland deregulation was April 2008, serving 1.3 million businesses, charities and public sector organisations.
Followed by above inflation water and wastewater price rises, this year for instance we have significant increases in water charges for example Southern Water 18 percent increase for water and 13 percent increase in wastewater charges.
Not to mention 13 percent increases for fixed charges for drainage.
The North East took a hit also with Northumbrian Water increasing water charges by 12.7 percent and wastewater charges by 11.3 percent.
Then the usual water retail fees of around 10 percent on top and these are significant increases.
In fact I am predicting increases including last years, this year and in 3 years’ time charges will have increased on average 75 percent.
So why such significant year on year increases?
Increases by all of the regional water and wastewater is being driven by the usual suspects. Energy costs, wages, tax increases and the desperate need to repair and renew the water and wastewater infrastructure such as water pipes, sewer pipes, drains and sewage treatments works.
All desperate need of huge investment.
So who pays?
Customers like you!
So how can you reduce your water and wastewater costs and mitigate those annual increases in charges?
Now that the water market has deregulated you can switch water supplier and get a better deal.
I know from previous experiences or talking to care homes providers many have now switched water supplier and so are paying on default charges which are higher than if the business contracted with a new supplier.
Some have switched a few years ago and a lot has changed since then, there are great deals available in the water retail market, if only you know where to look.
Switching water supplier is a gateway to future savings, and refunds due to historical billing errors.
For example: – Harbour Healthcare switched water supplier and also commission a water audit across their estate resulting in six figure savings.
Another care provider went out to market resulting in savings of £120,000 by switching alone!
In my experience, without exception on either by switching water supplier and commissioning water bill validation and water audits, significant savings and refunds can be achieved, by most if not all care home providers.
So how do I find the best possible deal by Switching Water Supplier?
The good news is that for care providers Care England have recently signed a landmark partnership deal with SwitchWaterSupplier.com, the UK’s only business water comparison site which tenders water supply contracts on a live tender platform to all the water retail companies in the water market.
To ensure you get the very best value deal and service from the leading water industry experts.
Your water billing data is uploaded to the platform and the suppliers bid for your contract over a 60-minute duration.
The best prices are shown at the top of the list in descending order.
At the end of the 60-minute process the tender results are sent to you and you select the best value deal.
When your new supplier has been selected a Customer Service Director at SwitchwaterSupplier.com manages the switch from your existing water supplier to your new supplier.
Readings are taken from the water meters at your sites to enable the account to be closed and opened with your new supplier using actual readings.
This ensures you have accurate continuity of billing going forwards.
How can I make any other savings if I have switched water supplier already?
If you have already switched water supplier then it is best to commission a water audit of your water and wastewater bills.
Water audits are the best way to identify savings and refunds due to historical overcharges.
Many care home businesses have successfully claimed £1,000’s in rebates due to incorrectly levied charges, the charges going forwards would also be reduced.
Historical overcharging is rife within the water market, there are many different areas of overcharging for example.
In the Midlands Severn Trent area 100’s of care home providers are being overcharged due to the incorrect tariff applied particularly for care homes with Dementia patients.
Other areas of savings and refunds are due to historical incorrect meter readings and surface water charges for the treatment and disposal of rainwater based on site area charges, many sites within this sector will be overcharged.
Water audits will uncover incorrect charges.
How will I know my water bills are correct going forward in the future?
Most water suppliers will at some point in time send out incorrect bills due to glitches in their billing systems and incorrect wholesale water market data.
The water market is not that different to the energy market where from time-to-time gas and electric bills are incorrect, the same happens in the water market.
The trick is how to spot the errors which can be costly if not spotted and rectified.
If your business has multiple sites we recommend that a water bill validation project is undertaken to ensure bills are checked and validated prior to payment by water industry experts, this is your insurance against incorrect charging and overpayment.
Water bill validation is a cost-effective way of ensuring bills are correct.
Future bills are diverted to the appointed water consultants and the bills are checked and validated, the data from the bills is all recorded in a water database, for example: –
Meter readings, water consumption, standing charges, in fact all elements of the bills and there are many.
Only when the bills are deemed correct will they be sent to your accounts payable for settlement, secure in the knowledge the bills are correct.
Driving down water consumption, benchmarking and water efficiency.
The water database created and updated through the water bill validation process is the up most importance to drive down water consumption and costs.
Recording water consumption per site is vital to determine whether the site is an efficient water user or poor water user.
Sites will be benchmarked in accordance with how many beds are operating within the care environment.
The water consultants at SwitchWaterSupplier.com have consumption and water billing data for 1,000’s sites within the care sector and so will set the water consumption per bed at a realistic target that your care business is able to achieve, working in partnership with the water industry experts.
Driving down your water consumption through a focused and proven water management strategy will not only control and maintain savings, it will also ensure your business will hit sustainability and environmental targets.
Be Water Wise!