A man who won a three-year battle to cut his sewerage bill believes he can save other people from throwing their money needlessly down the drain.

Steve Cunningham, 52, of Brock Hill, Wickford, has been in dispute with Anglian Water since he created a lake in his back garden in 2004.

He paid Essex and Suffolk Water £511 to supply water for the lake but refused to cover an additional £638 sewerage bill from Anglian Water.

He argued the water would either remain in the lake, evaporate, or soak into the soil - but would not go down the drain.

The case went through county court, industry regulator Ofwat and the Consumer Council for Water before Anglian Water agreed to waive the bill.

Mr Cunningham is convinced countless other businesses and householders could follow his lead because they are being charged sewerage fees for water that never reaches the sewers.

He thinks garden centres which water thousands of plants could do the same but also thinks the ruling could benefit householders who regularly wash their cars, spray gardens or keep animals that drink a lot of water.

He is so convinced people are being ripped off he has set up a metering business to help them slash their bills.

He said: "I fitted a sub-meter to my outside tap to measure exactly how much water went in the lake.

"I told the water companies I had no problem paying for the supply, but why should I pay for drainage?

"Now they've backed down, I think I've set a precedent. How many other people out there are paying above the odds? This could save people thousands of pounds.

"I can't stress enough - don't let them bully you."

Mr Cunningham plans to sell sub-meters, which can be fitted to outdoor water supplies, to measure the amount of water in people's homes and businesses which is not destined for the sewers.

Sarah Rowland, spokeswoman for Anglian Water, insisted the vast majority of people were not overcharged for drainage.

She said: "We automatically assume ten per cent of the water people use does not go down the drain and we adjust our bills accordingly.

"If customers can prove they use more than that, we will be happy to give them a rebate."