More than 2,300 people who use water but have never received a bill could face substantial back-charges after having their homes identified in the opening fortnight of an audit of Thames Water's entire customer base.
Their details are now being checked and anyone found to be an unbilled customer could receive up to six years' worth of bills in one go - unless they come forward under the company's amnesty for unbilled customers, which is running in parallel with the audit.
In addition to the 2,367 properties earmarked under the audit, a further 644 possibly unbilled customers have rung Thames Water's amnesty line.
If these people are confirmed as unbilled customers, they will have their previously unpaid charges waived on the agreement they pay for their water from now on.
The audit and the amnesty were launched in parallel on January 20 as the fairest way of ensuring all Thames Water customers receive the correct bills, and the company receives the income it needs to maintain and improve the service it provides.
Under the amnesty if unbilled residential customers get in touch voluntarily they will not be charged for their previous water use. If they are discovered after the amnesty period closes on March 3, they could face back-charges for unpaid bills.
Mike Tempest, customer services director, said:
"We've had 1,509 calls to our amnesty line in the first two weeks of our six-week amnesty, generating 644 leads for us to follow up.
"These customers have nothing to worry about. If we confirm they are unbilled, any back-charges will be waived on the agreement they pay from now on, which is good news for them.
"However, of the 412,299 properties counted by the end of the second week of our customer base audit, 2,367 now are being checked. If we find the occupiers are using water without paying for it, and they don't come forward under our amnesty, they face up to six years of back-charges."
"And secondly, we need an accurate picture of where our water goes in each part of our network: if it's going to customers, we want it to be recorded as such, rather than being unaccounted for.
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