and your partner live in a flat, where (as is likely) a meter can't be installed, why should you be paying nearly the same 400+ water bill as the family in the big house next door? Instead, apply for what is called the "assessed household charge". Go online to your water company website and complete the online form. For Thames Water customers, it cuts the bill to 267. Better still, if you're single, the charge drops to 202 (for 2012-2013). If you live in a property where a meter can be installed, go ahead and do it. It's free, and with a few changes to behaviour around the home it is possible to slash your consumption, and, with it, the size of the bill. It's easily possible to get this down to 250 a year.