Glossary of terms
| Terms | Meaning |
| ADC | Average Daily Consumption (m3) |
| Advance (m3) | Difference between previous actual read and last actual read |
| AMR | Automatic Meter Reading or meter logging that read water consumption approximately every 15 minutes, and record data in a consumption management system which customer can log in and analyse it. |
| CCW | Consumer Council for Water. The organisation which provides free guidance and information for household or business water consumer in England or Wales, to help customers solve a complaint with their water company. https://www.ccwater.org.uk/ |
| CMOS | Central Market Operating System |
| Codes | Market terms and agreements by which use as a tool to communicate with other parties in the open water market |
| Consolidated bill | The combination of the bills from many sites and meters, to ease to make payment and save administration time. |
| COT/ COO | Change of Tenancy or Change of Occupier |
| Customer Account number | A unique number to identify the customers. |
| DEFRA | The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs. They set the government strategy and forms the legislative framework. To find out more click here DEFRA |
| Discharge point | A point which a trade effluent service is provided to eligible premises. One or more discharge points can be associated with a sewerage SPID. |
| DPID | Discharge Point Identifiers. A unique number to identify the discharge point services of each trade effluence on your premise. |
| Eligible to switch | Non-Household and businesses customers that meet OFWAT criteria. Check the regulations by clicking OFWAT Eligibility |
| ERE | End Read Estimate |
| Gap Site | An Eligible Site missing from CMOS |
| GSS | Guaranteed Service Standards |
| m3 | Cubic Meter (1m3 is equal to 1,000 litres) |
| Meter | A device for measuring the quantity of water used in a building, site, or business premises. |
| Micro-Business customer | Non-Household customer where the number of employees is less than 10. OFWAT Micro Business Customers |
| Ml | Megalitre (1Ml = 1,000m3 which is 1 million litres) |
| MOSL | Market Operator Services Limited. Responsible for the essential central IT systems to ensure that market is operating smoothly. MOSL Website |
| MSN | Meter Serial Number |
| Non-Household (NHH) customer | Business customer who meets OFWAT criteria and eligible to switch retailer. |
| Non-standard charges | The miscellaneous charges for extra services that water companies provide which not included in the tariff rate. For example, charges for connection and reconnection, meter installation, meter testing, and so on. |
| OFWAT | The Office of Water Services Regulation. They Implement DEFRA reforms and ensures that waters companies are operating fairly. OFWAT Website |
| Open Water | A coalition of Defra, OFWAT and MOSL responsible for designing and delivering the new Non-Household retail market.Open-Water Website |
| PR19 | Price Review 2019 (price set for 2020-2025) OFWAT PR19 |
| Rateable value charges | A charge which calculates based on the estimated rate volume of the property for the premise that does not have a meter. |
| Retail charges | Retailer charge rate for water supply service. |
| Retailer | A third party that holds a Water Supply and/or Sewerage Supply license to provide water retail services to the end customer. |
| RSA | Return to Sewer Allowance. The fraction of the volume which is deemed to return to sewer for a particular meter in % |
| Self-supply | A term when a customer applies for a self-supply licence to buy water supply and wastewater services directly from the water wholesaler company. |
| Sensitive customer | Vulnerable customer who in the circumstances of an emergency is less able to help themselves, for example, hospital, care home, nursing home, prison, farm (with commercial livestock), educational establishment, and so on. |
| Service Components | Set of water service components which have been serving on your premise. A SPID can have several service components, but a SPID can only have one service component of each type. |
| Service Components – Accessed water service component | Any unmetered water service that’s charged on a volume basis where the volume is estimated. |
| Service Components – Assessed sewerage service component | Any unmetered sewerage service that’s charged on a volume basis where the volume is estimated. |
| Service Components – Highway drainage service component | Services for coping with drainage from roads and highways. |
| Service Components -Metered Foul sewerage service component | The disposal of metered sewerage. |
| Service Components -Metered non- potable water service component | The provision of metered non-drinkable water. |
| Service Components -Metered potable water service component | The provision of metered drinking water. |
| Service Components -Sewerage charge adjustment service component | A legislated financial adjustment to sewerage service costs. |
| Service Components -Sewerage service component | Set of wastewater service components which have been serving on your premise. A SPID can have several service components, but a SPID can only have one service component of each type. |
| Service Components -Surface water service component | Services for coping with drainage from the surface of buildings or land. |
| Service Components -Trade effluent service component | Service relating to trade effluent, a special kind of sewerage. |
| Service Components -Unmeasured Sewerage Service Component | Any sewerage service, the charge for which isn’t volume-based. |
| Service Components -Unmeasured water service component | Any water service, the charge for which isn’t volume-based. |
| Service Components -Water charge adjustment service component | A legislated financial adjustment to water service cost. |
| SIC | Standard Industry Classification, used in classifying business establishments and other statistical units by the type of economic activity in which they are engaged. |
| Site/ Premise | A place where your business building located which can have one or more site (multiple sites). |
| SPID | Supply Point Identifiers. A unique number to identify the services on your premise. |
| SRE | Start Read Estimate |
| Supply point | The point of services on the customer premise. Each premise can have supply point up to two points, one for water and one for sewerage services. |
| Switch | A process where Non-Household customers choose to change their water retailers. |
| TPI | Third Party Intermediary |
| Trade Effluent | Any sewerage liquid produced in the course of trade or industry which contaminated specific chemicals. The example of industry such as laundrette, food and drink production, commercial swimming pool. A SPID can have one or more Discharge Point ID (DPID), one for each trade effluent service provided. |
| Unmeasured | Sites that are not on a water meter. |
| Volume-based charges | A charge which calculates based on the amount of water received from the meter. |
| WASCs | Water and Sewerage Company. A third party which holds a water wholesale license to provide water and sewerage services. |
| Waste Water Treatment | Involves separation of solid matter from wastewater followed by biological (and sometimes other kinds of) treatment of liquid. |
| Water UK | The Industry association which represents UK water and waste water services suppliers at National and European level. Water-UK Website |
| Wholesaler | A third party that holds a water wholesale license to provide water and/ or sewerage services. |
| Wholesaler charges | Wholesale tariff rate which is approved by OFWAT. |
| WOCs | Water Only Company. A third party which holds a water wholesale license to provide water only services. |
| Yearly Volume Estimate | An estimate of the annual Volume supplied in relation to a meter or Discharge Point on the basis of the relevant Eligible Premises being Occupied Premises. Value in m3/a |
