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Good point!

Yes, will try that. But just to clarify, I've spent so many hours in communication with Thames about this now that I'd just be happy for them to acknowledge there's no leak.

They have me over a barrel. They claim I used over 40K litres of water in 4 days last November. They say they might give me "leak allowance" if I can prove I don't have a leak. It's Kafkaesque!

No, I have a combi boiler

Yes, I assume the stop cock doesn't work properly

Spoke to Thames at length today. They won't trust my DIY test showing that there's no leak. They insist I pay for a plumber's report before they'll believe me.

It's a smart meter, so it appears to update daily.

They want to double my monthly direct debit based on last 12 months' usage. It was when I got the new monthly bill that I looked into it and saw the huge usage over 4 days in November 2023. I'm now trying to prove to them it's not a leak on my property because - as you say - I'd have noticed if...

I tried this over the weekend. After turning off the main stopcock in the street, I was still getting water flowing from the kitchen tap. I presume that means there is no leak between the stopcock and the house. I also tried taking 2 water readings 20 mins apart (making sure no water was used...

Presumably the leak draws water from the tumbler. But I must admit, I don't quite understand the physics. However, I'll give it a go over the weekend

Thanks. Interested to understand how this works.

I can if I don't want to know if there is a leak. Or if I don't want to know if their meter is faulty.

I haven't done that. Can I still even take an 'actual' reading if there's a smart meter installed? In any case, I have now only a few weeks to fix the leak (or establish there isn't one) before Thames insist on fixing it themselves (see my earlier post).

Thames are insisting the meter is correct. It was already a smart meter at that time

I would've known, I think, if I'd left something running for 4 days. They didn't contact me, they just doubled my bill. I contacted them and said can you check the meter. That's when they said I had a leak (as I say, 4 days long last November)

What things could cause a controlled leak? I genuinely don't think any neighbours stole our water. We live in a terrace and are on good terms with everyone! Is there anything Thames could've done to cause this?

You jest but it has raised an interesting question. Is it possible for 10K litres of water to be leaked into my property daily for 4 days without my noticing? Would there be major subsidence, or is that not enough to cause that?

If they have, they've kept it well hidden

Thank you. Yes, that makes perfect sense. I may have to get an internal stop tap installed but it'd useful anyway. There's no way a smart meter could mess up this test, is there?

I've been advised by Thames Water that I probably have a water leak somewhere on my property. They have given me 4 weeks to fix it or else they say they will have to do it themselves and they will charge me for it. It's strange, though, because the water meter shows consistent/normal readings...