Anyone familiar with water meters ? UPDATE

mbaird said
The meter was replaced just before the bill spiked . They sais the old one was broken and had not been reading correctly. But our usage/ billing has been consitant for 7 yrs. And summertime usage is consistant ( higher) with using the sprinkler . We dont use much water.
I find it suspicious that the spike coincided with the fiber company work , the breaking of neighbors mian ( 2' away from our meter) and the replacement of our meter .

You did not mention replacement or I missed it
Your old meter was running slow and hence your bill was lower. The new meter reads as it should
How low your meter was reading would be determined by your new bill if your water usage is the same, something only you would know
Honestly consider yourself lucky your not getting a estimated bill for those past years