British expat shares 'raw panic' as she's charged £64,000 for a water bill in Spain
Gillian and her husband Tom were charged £64,000
OLIVE PRESS
A retired British expat, 66, was charged a staggering sum for her latest water bill.
She was given this by La Viñuela town hall and is one of many in the area dealing with huge bills.
Gillian, who splits her time between Spain and Scotland, received a bill for €73,640, or around £64,000.
It said she used 2.6 million cubic litres of water - around 600 litres per house - over two quarters.
The couple's bills skyrocketed
OLIVE PRESS
Gillian lives with her husband Tom in a three-bedroom home and says there is no way they could have used nearly that amount of water.
"I couldn't believe it at first when I saw I owed €73,640.
"I just felt raw panic. I've been overwhelmed with stress since I saw the bill last month," she told Mail Online.
"I'm not refusing to pay for the water. We're just refusing to pay €70,000. We don't have the money and even if we did, it's still entirely wrong."
The bills saw a whopping increase on her previous bills that cost just €15.48 (£13.46) and €14.18 (12.33).
Others in the area have been hit with water bills costing thousands.
Gillian said her British neighbour had a similar problem when he was hit by a bill of €43,000 (£37,375).
After calling in a lawyer, they suggested someone had been stealing his water.
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The British couple live in Spain
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Others hit have blamed the high fees on failing water meters.
Councillor for foreign citizens Amber Crookshank said an investigation has been launched into the water meters and they will be tested to check if they are accurate.
Results of investigations in the bills are expected within four weeks but there are no guarantees for residents.
This comes as a British expat whose bowel exploded during a trip back to the UK was charged £20,000.