Information from Ofwat and CCW, published today, shows
that water companies are increasing financial support for their
customers, with record numbers benefiting from discounted water
bills. However, both organisations are calling on companies to do
even more to help in the face of immediate and urgent cost of
living pressures.
In October 2022, Ofwat and CCW chief executives and Emma Clancy wrote to water
companies setting out their shared expectation that water
companies must do more to support a greater number of customers
given the current pressures on the cost of living. This included
considering how water companies could reduce the impact of
inflation on customers' bills for 2023-24.
Water companies submitted their plans to Ofwat and CCW in
December 2022. Ofwat has today published these plans. They
highlight examples of company good practice commitments, which
include some water companies:
- contributing their own money to fund financial support
measures and not solely relying on customer contributions;
- working to reduce the impact of inflation on 2023-24 bills,
for example by deferring some element of the increase in bills
due to inflation; and
- working with other utilities, housing associations, local
government and charities to raise awareness and increase take-up
of social tariffs and other forms of support.
While these steps are encouraging, in some cases companies are
still using targets set before the current cost of living
pressures emerged. Ofwat and CCW have identified areas where
water companies can learn from best practice to increase support
for customers struggling to pay, through:
- increasing funding of social tariffs – for example through
shareholder contributions;
- improving access to and awareness of support– for example,
making it easy for customers to apply for help in ways that suit
their needs; and
- updating the understanding of what level of support customers
are willing to fund – helping identify opportunities to expand
support where customer views have not been recently sought.
Ofwat Chief Executive said:
"We welcome the different actions that companies are taking to
help those who need it most. The scale of cost of living
challenges mean that this is and must remain a priority - water
companies need to continue to improve the support they offer
customers. With households facing unprecedented pressures
on their finances, customers will expect to see water companies,
and their shareholders, go above and beyond to support them".
Emma Clancy, Chief Executive of the Consumer Council for Water
(CCW), said:
“We’ve seen some good examples of water companies ramping up
their efforts to take the worry out of water bills for customers
and we particularly applaud those that are putting in
shareholders’ own money to bolster support. There is no room for
complacency though and the prospect of future bill increases,
fuelled by high inflation and the price tag of environmental
investment, means companies will have to do even more to support
low-income customers. The case for a new water affordability
scheme to provide fairer and consistent support for households
struggling to pay their bill has never been more compelling.”
//ENDS//
Notes to editors:
CCW’s help with your water
bill page is also packed with advice and tools including
its water meter calculator, Benefits Calculator and social tariff
guide.
Customers who are worried about their bill should visit Ofwat’s
cost of living page for
four tips to follow.
Ofwat requires water companies to publish their 2023-24 charges
on or before 1 February 2023; Water UK will announce average
water bills in early February 2023.
Water companies' plans to help customers with cost of living
pressures, good practice and areas for improvement are available
on the Ofwat website. A summary infographic is available.
Links to previous relevant press notices:
