A dad-of-one has been handed a whopping £4,000 water bill even though he is hardly ever home, he claims.
Varun, 35, from Croydon, London, was even charged for using water when he and his wife were on holiday.
He said Thames Water claimed he used 5,000 litres of water a day, despite him and his family spending most of their day outside the house.
The dad said he was 'shocked' when he checked his water bill online and discovered it had shot through the roof, MyLondon reports.
Thames Water is now looking into Varun's complaint and said some of the family's water meter readings required further investigation.
Speaking to MyLondon, Varun said: "I was shocked when checking the invoice in my online Thames Water account.
"I thought it might be some system error because before moving to Croydon, I used to live in Harrow and I used to pay around £27 per month as my water bill.
"When I moved to my current house in October 2020, my water usage was around 300 litres per day according to last year’s bills.
"But suddenly after February 2021, it started showing my usage as around 5,000 litres per day”.
As of 2021, Varun’s new monthly water bill has averaged out to £333 and he says really doesn’t understand why.
Varun claims that his account shows him continuing to use water in November 2021 despite the fact that he says he and his family had travelled to India that month.
He also said he believes the members of his household do not use water beyond what is considered normal and he does not believe there is a leak.
He says: “Our water usage is normal. It includes regular daily activities and a quick bath in the morning.
"We wash our clothes two to three times a week. I do not wash my car or have a garden where we would use lots of water.
"After I got this bill, the first thing I did was get a plumber to check for any leaks. The plumber said that there are no leaks inside the house”.
He also claims that his wife called Thames Water many times, but was initially not able to get through to anyone.
However, eventually she was able to get someone to visit their home on March 22.
However, Varun claims they left “without properly finding out about the issue”.
He adds: “We have been again contacting Thames Water to send someone to get our meter checked or find any leaks outside our home. Clearly we cannot afford to pay this amount.
"As such we are struggling with an increase in energy bills and other costs of living here.
"We can hardly make ends meet every month, so paying around £300 to £350 per month on water is out of question.
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“One of Thames Water’s chat agents told us that if they find any issues with the current bill in due course they will refund us.
"But they don't understand where we are supposed to find the money to start with."
Responding to MyLondon's request for comment, Thames Water said: “We’re sorry for the inconvenience and worry this has caused the family and are re-checking their account as a priority.
"We’ve identified some readings from their water meter that require further investigation and will keep the family updated on our progress.
"We’ll also put the account on hold until the case has been fully resolved.”
