Case study
Glen Brae Cottage cut its holiday let water rates by 60%
A Braemar holiday let facing rising running costs. A water comparison found contracted rates 60% below the default market rates that apply out of contract, and cheaper than anything else on the table.
Glen Brae at a glance
Glen Brae Cottage’s owner wanted to know whether his holiday let could be paying less for water. The comparison produced a range of quotes cheaper than he was paying and cheaper than anything else he’d been offered, with the new contracted rates coming in 60% below the default market rates that would apply out of contract.
Client overview
Glen Brae Cottage is a holiday let in Braemar, on Royal Deeside at the edge of the Cairngorms National Park. Its owner, Glenn Perkins, came to us for a water quote to see whether the cottage could be paying less.
Rising running costs have pushed a lot of holiday home owners to look properly at their utilities, and water is the bill that most often goes unexamined.
The challenge
Holiday let water is easy to overlook. A let’s water bill can be based on metered usage or on the rateable value of the property, and owners rarely know which applies to them, let alone whether the rate attached to it is competitive.
Default rates are expensive. Without a contract in place, a business water supply sits on default market rates. They’re the most expensive way to buy water, and nobody sends you a letter pointing that out.
How we approached it
We ran the cottage through our business water comparison, checking the market against what Glenn was currently paying and against the other quotes he’d gathered himself. The point of a comparison is not just finding a cheaper number. It’s knowing the number you sign is the right one for how the property actually uses water.
What we did, step by step
Reviewed how the cottage was billed for water, and what it was currently paying.
Compared the market and produced a range of quotes, each cheaper than the existing rates and cheaper than anything else Glenn had received.
Completed the switch to the new supplier, placing the cottage on contracted rates 60% below the default market rates it would otherwise face out of contract.
What changed
Contracted rates 60% below the default. The new rates are locked in by contract rather than floating on the most expensive tariff in the market.
Cheaper than every other option on the table. The winning quote beat both the existing rates and the quotes Glenn had gathered elsewhere.
Better service alongside the saving. The switch brought improved customer service as well as a lower rate.
Key insight
The gap between contracted and default water rates is much bigger than most owners expect. For a small property like a holiday let, that gap can be the whole difference between water being a footnote and water being a problem. Thirty minutes with a recent bill is usually enough to find out which side of it you’re on.
Own a holiday let or small property?
If you own a holiday let, a second property that’s let commercially, or any small business premises where nobody has looked at the water bill in a while, the same comparison applies. We’d start with how the property is billed now, then test the market against it.
Industry terms used on this page
- Default market rates
- The rates a business water supply pays when no contract is in place. Typically the most expensive way to buy water, and where supplies drift to when contracts lapse unnoticed.
- Contracted rates
- Rates agreed with a supplier for a fixed arrangement. Signing a contract is what moves a supply off default pricing.
- Rateable value billing
- A charging method for unmetered supplies based on a property’s historic rateable value rather than measured usage. Common on smaller and older properties, including holiday lets.
- Metered billing
- Charges based on actual consumption recorded by a water meter. Which method applies changes what a fair rate looks like for the property.
- Business water comparison
- Testing what a property currently pays against quotes from other licensed suppliers for the same supply.
Common questions
Does a holiday let count as a business for water?
A property let commercially is usually treated as non domestic for water, which means it can be billed as a business supply and, in the open market, can choose its supplier.
How do I know if my holiday let is on metered or rateable value billing?
Your bill will say. Metered bills show consumption in cubic metres; rateable value bills reference the property’s RV figure. Which one applies changes what a competitive rate looks like.
What are default market rates and why do they matter?
They’re the rates that apply when no contract is in place, and they’re typically the most expensive in the market. Supplies drift onto them when a contract ends unnoticed or was never signed.
Is it worth comparing water for a small property?
Glen Brae’s contracted rates came in 60% below the default market rates it would otherwise face. On a small property the pounds are smaller than on an industrial estate, but the percentage gap can be just as wide.
Could a comparison work for my property?
If you own a holiday let or small business premises and haven’t looked at the water bill recently, it’s usually worth the check. We’d start with a recent bill and how the property is currently charged.
Published with permission
This case study is published with the consent of Glen Brae Cottage. Want your business featured? Get in touch
When did you last look at your holiday let’s water bill?
Send us a recent bill. We’ll tell you how the property is charged and whether the market can beat it.