Apparent Water Loss Control 

Water that reaches a user (either authorized or unauthorized) but isn’t paid for is called “apparent water loss.” And while apparent loss is often caused by meter under-registration, there are many other causes such as faulty signal calibration, billing system setup errors, data handling issues, and theft. These “paper losses” have a direct impact on a utility’s bottom line – they represent lost revenue the utility could be collecting.   

Unfortunately, apparent losses often initially appear to be real losses because they’re not obvious – they don’t register on a meter and require investigation to discover. It is important to distinguish between real and apparent losses because the tools used for each are very different; if apparent loss is misidentified as real loss, a utility may apply the wrong tools to combat it. This inappropriate use of tools can lead a utility to expend resources without the hope of a positive return on the investment.  

This section of the Water Loss Switchboard contains tools and resources focused on identifying and addressing apparent water losses.