A retired man has credited his new water meter with cutting his household expenditure.

Graham Crawshaw, from Eccleston in Lancashire, revealed that he used to pay more than £573 a year on his water bills.

However, he told the Daily Mail that his neighbour was paying far less because she had a meter fitted in her home.

This prompted Mr Crawshaw to contact his local water company and obtain a meter for himself, a move which has saved him hundreds of pounds since.

"The charge has dropped to £189.12 - a saving of £384.07," he commented.

Mr Crawshaw added that households have 12 months to decide whether they want to keep their water meters, which can be obtained free of charge.

Homeowners could also cut their utility bills by fitting their homes with water-saving gadgets such as tap aerators.

These were recently recommended by Craig Thompson of Scottish and Southern Energy, who told the Journal that measures such as only putting a full load in a washing machine could also help to cut costs.