An advocate for ratepayers says there is a risk Wellington residents will refuse to follow water restrictions, with growing frustration over pricey bills.

Tiaki Wai's first quarterly bills were sent out over the past few weeks, leaving residents shocked at the pricetag, some over $1000.

Come September, Wellington region will be asked to only use sprinklers every second day, and just between the hours of 6-8am and 7-9pm. The Upper Hutt area was already under those restrictions.

James Ross from the Wellington Rates Payers Alliance said the rationing had been unfair for a long time, but had been hidden away in rates bills.

Now, with water charges under a spotlight in a separate Tiaki Wai bill, he said restrictions would likely not be taken well.

"There's a very real concern that people won't be motivated to follow those water restrictions, because frankly I think a lot of people will see them as unfair.

"You've now got these huge water bills ... and yet we're still being told the assests are in such a bad way that you can't use your sprinklers when you need to."

For Ross, this would be solved with water meters, which he said would motivate residents to ration water.

Tiaki Wai planned to roll out water meters so bills reflected actual water use, rather than a fixed rate based on capital value.

However, its draft strategy said installing meters could take between five and seven years, and may cost upwards of $500 million.

Ross said the entity needed to begin this roll out sooner - and cheaper.

He said restrictions were a reality of mismanaged water systems, but meters would allow people to pay for what they actually use.

Tiaki Wai have been approached for comment.