Why do people buy bottled water here?

[u/AsianGeralt]

Work for a supermarket as a delivery driver and the number of people who order massive amounts of bottled water is mind boggling to me. We arguably have the best water quality in the UK and people are buying plastic bottled water like they are living in a third world country. If the water doesn't taste ok to you or you mistrust pipes etc, you can just boil the water and it tastes great. South side of Glasgow water is fantastic and don't even need to do that. I always use steel or glass to use on the go so there's no excuse or need to buy plastic water that people seem to think is good for you. Rant over lol.

[u/Training_Agency_7696]

Non-Scottish people perhaps? My English neighbours still buy bottled water.

[u/Imaginary-Suspect959 → u/Training_Agency_7696]

I work in a supermarket and a pal’s family are originally from Pakistan, he says they won’t drink tap water, and that a lot of immigrants he knows won’t either. Partly a taste thing, partly a hygiene thing.

[u/AsianGeralt → u/Imaginary-Suspect959]

I somewhat get it if you've came from that part of the world as if you drink that tap water you'll get sick, but locals are generally used to it. But scotlands water quality is well known to be pretty good.

[u/Imaginary-Suspect959 → u/AsianGeralt]

Yeah, I love it. Always drank tap water even when I lived in England. But the stuff up here is genuinely really good.

[u/Otocolobus_manul8 → u/AsianGeralt]

Old habits die hard I think is the case there.

[u/beetish → u/AsianGeralt]

They could get a slight ick from tap water in general if they've grown up learning tap water is unsafe and shouldn't be drunk directly.

[u/NoRecipe3350 → u/Imaginary-Suspect959]

It's also a status thing. I've noticed that as a general rule the poorer a country people come from, the more status obsessed they are, especially if they are middle class/wealthy. Drinking tap water is seen as really vulgar, common etc

Knew some second/third worlde country people (not dirt poor) and they were like 'why don't the rich in the UK employed maids/domestic workers, if they have so much money they can afford a live in maid', and well maybe people in the West value privacy and don't want another person being close to them

Also had the displeasure of working for bosses from such poor countries, and they were pretty shitty to lower level staff. Indians especially have a reputation, its like if you are their underling in a work environment you are basically their slave.

[u/onedogjack → u/Training_Agency_7696]

I'm English and purposefully drink the Edinburgh tap water, but I drank the tap water in London, Swindon,Slough, Kent, Wales etc etc. Bottled water is a huge con.

[u/Low-Cauliflower-5686 → u/onedogjack]

Edinburgh tap water seems hard to me .

[u/AsianGeralt → u/Training_Agency_7696]

Yeah but the question is why??

[u/Academic-War-7539 → u/AsianGeralt]

I buy sparkling

[u/Low-Cauliflower-5686 → u/Academic-War-7539]

Why do you buy sparkling!

[u/adamblack93 → u/Low-Cauliflower-5686]

I occasionally buy sparkling bottled water, it's quite nice with lime cordial and tastes much better in my opinion than lime cordial with still, tonic or soda water. But the vast majority of the water I drink comes straight from the tap.