If you receive a water bill that is unusually high, it may well be due to a leak.

To check whether there is a leak on your property try the following:

• Close all the taps in your house
• Find your water meter. (This is located outside your house, possibly on the boundary)
• Your meter will have a row of numbers

Check the meter for movement of the numbers; if there is no visible movement then do the following:

• Take a meter reading by writing down all the numbers on the meter dial.
• Advise all the people on the property not to use any water for at least one hour; this can also be done overnight (but remember not to flush the loo during the night)
• Take a second meter reading after that time; if the reading has increased, then there is a leak. The numbers on the meter move to measure water flow…so if they have moved, there is a leak.

Should you suspect that the meter reading is incorrect, you may ask your nearest municipal office to verify the readings against their financial records and request a copy of photographs taken of the meter readings over the past three months.

In cases where consumers suspect that the meter itself may be faulty, the Municipality will first have to rule out the possibility of any leakages – either on the side of the water meter the consumer is responsible for, or on the side the Municipality is responsible for.

According to Overstrand Municipality’s Credit Control and Debt Collection Policy, if the leakage is on the consumer’s side of the meter, they will be responsible for paying all outstanding fees as well as for repairing the leak. The Municipality does offer customer assistance programmes to those consumers who have inadvertently experienced severe water losses.

Another possibility to restrict your water consumption, is to request the Municipality to cap usage by having a flow-restrictor meter installed. Tampering with any municipal meter is a criminal offence liable to hefty fines and the immediate suspension of all municipal services.

Feel free to direct any questions regarding meter readings or other general accounting enquiries to enquiries@overstrand.gov.za or visit your nearest municipal office to verify your account details.

Alternatively, phone the finance department on

• Kleinmond 028 271 8400 or 028 271 8465
• Hermanus 028 313 8000 or 028 313 8196
• Stanford 028 341 8500 or 028 341 8516
• Gansbaai 028 384 8300 or 028 384 8328