A very high water bill: finding leaks and who pays

Terms used

• Reclamación — A reclamación is a formal written complaint, sent to the provider's customer service, asking for a bill or decision to be reviewed.
• Llave de paso — The llave de paso is the stopcock that shuts off the water supply to your flat.
• OMIC — The OMIC is the town hall's consumer information office, which helps with complaints against businesses.
• Junta Arbitral de Consumo — The Junta Arbitral de Consumo is a public consumer arbitration board that settles disputes with businesses that have joined it.

Key rules

• Leak test: Close all taps and wait 30 to 60 minutes, or overnight, then read the meter again to find a hidden leak.
• Who pays: The landlord pays for leaks from fixed installations and wear, while you pay for small repairs from ordinary use or damage you caused.
• Tell your landlord: Report a leak in writing straight away, because delay can make you liable for the extra damage.
• Complaint: Send a written reclamación quickly, as many providers only accept one within about a month of the bill.
• Bill reduction: No national rule gives you a reduction after a leak, so ask your provider what it allows.

Start by testing for a hidden leak

A meter test takes under an hour and tells you if water is escaping.

1. Close every tap and turn off the washing machine and dishwasher. Make sure nobody flushes a toilet.
2. Read the meter, including the small digits, or note the position of the small star or dial. Take a photo.
3. Wait 30 to 60 minutes, or leave it overnight, without using water.
4. Read the meter again. If the numbers changed or the dial is turning, water is leaking somewhere.

Toilet cisterns are a common culprit. Add a little food colouring to the cistern. If colour shows up in the bowl without flushing, the cistern is leaking.

If the meter still moves, close the flat's stopcock (llave de paso). If the meter stops, the leak is inside your flat. If it keeps moving, the leak is in the building's pipes before your stopcock. Tell your landlord or the building administrator either way.

Who pays for the leak

The landlord pays for leaks from fixed installations and wear. That means pipes in walls or floors, the riser, an old water heater or boiler, and water coming in through the roof or facade.

You pay for small repairs from ordinary use, such as a worn tap washer, a siphon, a flexible hose or a shower head. You also pay for damage you caused, such as leaving a tap running or ignoring a leak you knew about.

Some rules to follow:

• Tell the landlord as soon as you find a problem, in writing, and allow access for the repair. If you delay and the damage grows, you can be held liable for the extra damage.
• In an urgent case, you may arrange the repair yourself to prevent serious damage, then claim the cost back from the landlord. Keep the invoice and photos.
• The lease can assign minor repairs to you, but it cannot remove the landlord's duty to keep the home habitable.
• Damage to neighbours is usually settled through the home insurance of whoever is at fault. The landlord's building insurance often covers structural causes.
• Room rentals and seasonal lets may follow different terms. Each case depends on the lease and the cause, and disputes end up in court.

Ask for the bill to be reviewed

Send a written complaint (reclamación) to the water provider's customer service. Name your contract, the bill and the reading in question, and ask for the reading and calculation to be reviewed. Keep a copy and proof you sent it. Providers usually have to answer within about a month.

Act quickly. Many providers only accept a complaint within about a month of the bill, and the exact deadline depends on your town's regulation. Check it with your provider or town hall.

If you doubt the meter itself, ask the provider to verify it. The meter goes to an accredited laboratory. If the meter is correct, you generally pay for the check. If it is faulty, the provider pays. Do the leak test first, because a leak is a far more likely cause than a faulty meter.

Ask for a reduction after a hidden leak

There is no national rule that obliges providers to cut the bill. Some do, depending on the town's regulation and their own policy. The usual conditions are:

• the leak was hidden and not visible,
• it was repaired quickly,
• you can prove it with a plumber's invoice and photos.

Often the sewage charge is waived or reduced, because the water never reached the drains. The water consumed is usually still billed, sometimes at a lower rate. Ask your provider what applies where you live.

If the provider says no

Go to one of these:

• the regional consumer authority,
• your town hall's consumer office (OMIC),
• the consumer arbitration board (Junta Arbitral de Consumo), if the provider has signed up to it.

If the water service is run by the town hall, the town hall or the water regulator handles complaints, and appeals against municipal charges have their own time limits.

Pay the part of the bill you do not dispute. This can help you avoid a cut-off while the complaint is open.

The timeline, warnings and questions below cover the steps and deadlines. If you are moving in, the move-in checklist helps you record existing defects before a leak becomes your problem.

Timeline and deadlines

• Send a written complaint (reclamación) to the provider's customer service, with your contract, bill and reading, and keep a copy: usually within a month of the bill

• Ask the provider to check the meter in a laboratory if you doubt the reading: with your complaint

• Wait for the provider's answer: usually about one month after you file

• Go to the regional consumer authority, your town hall's consumer office (OMIC) or the arbitration board: if the provider rejects the claim or does not answer

Move-in water checks for meter, taps and leaks

Move-in day water checks

• Find the main stopcock and the water meter, then photograph the meter showing the reading and the serial number, with the date visible.

• Check that the meter is not moving while every tap is closed, because a moving dial or small wheel points to a hidden leak that was there before you.

• Open every tap, shower, toilet cistern and appliance connection, and look for drips, loose handles, limescale and slow drainage.

• Run the hot tap and the water heater or boiler, and note how long the water takes to heat and how strong the pressure is.

• Look under sinks, behind the toilet and around the washing machine for leaks, rust, damp or mould.

• Check ceilings and walls for stains or bubbling paint, and photograph anything you find.

• Flush the toilet to check that the cistern fills and stops, and run the drains to confirm the water goes away.

• Add every existing defect to the signed inventory, with a photo of each item and its condition.

• Send the dated photos, video and notes to the landlord by email or WhatsApp within a few days of moving in, so the defects are clearly not yours.

• Ask the landlord for the boiler maintenance and safety records, and confirm who holds the water supply contract.

• Give the meter reading to the water company when you switch the contract into your name, so you do not pay for earlier consumption.

What to watch out for

• Missing the complaint window: Many providers only accept a complaint within about a month of the bill, so waiting can cost you the right to a review. File a written complaint as soon as the bill arrives and keep proof that you sent it.

• Delaying telling your landlord: If you wait to report a leak and the damage grows, you may have to pay for the extra damage.

• Paying for a meter check that finds nothing: If the meter proves correct, the cost of the check falls on you. Do the overnight meter test first, and only request the check if the meter keeps running with everything closed.

• Ignoring the leak or a running tap: Damage you cause by negligence, such as ignoring a known leak, is your cost, not the landlord's. Close the flat's stopcock (llave de paso) until the leak is fixed, and keep the plumber's invoice and photos.

• Unpaid bill leading to a cut-off: Not paying a disputed bill at all can put your supply at risk. Pay the part you do not dispute while the complaint is open.

Frequently asked questions

Will my water company reduce the bill if the leak was hidden?

Some providers do reduce the bill after a hidden leak in your private pipes, but there is no national rule. They usually want proof that the leak was hidden and repaired quickly, such as a plumber's invoice and photos. The sewage charge is often waived or cut for water that never reached the drains, while the water used is usually still billed.

Who pays for a meter check if I ask for one?

You pay if the meter turns out to be correct, and the provider pays if the meter is faulty. You ask the provider to send the meter to an accredited laboratory. Put the request in writing and keep a copy.

Where can I go if the water company rejects my claim?

You can take it to the regional consumer authority or your town hall's consumer office (OMIC). If the provider has joined the consumer arbitration board (Junta Arbitral de Consumo), you can ask it to decide too.

Can I pay only part of a disputed water bill?

Yes, paying the part you do not dispute may help you avoid a supply cut-off while the complaint is open. Say clearly in your written complaint which part you are contesting.