- Increase to water company reimbursements put more money back
into customers' pockets when their services are hit
- Triggers for compensation to be expanded to include company
failure to conduct meter readings and installations
- One of Environment Secretary's first promises in office
delivered as government rolls out plan to reform the water sector
Water companies will increase compensation payments to customers
up to tenfold from today (2 July), ensuring that the public are
more fairly reimbursed for supply issues and low standards of
service.
Customers will automatically receive more money for issues such
as continued low water pressure and cancelled appointments.
A key step in the government's mission to reform the water
sector, the move marks the first uplift in compensation rates in
25 years, with the government recognising the urgent need to
bring payments in line with inflation and properly compensate
households for poor service.
Severe issues such as flooding will see customer compensation
double from £1,000 to up to £2,000, while households suffering
consistent low water pressure will be automatically eligible to
receive up to £250 – a huge uplift from the previous compensation
rate of just £25.
From today, no action will be needed from eligible customers as
payments will automatically be credited back to their
accounts.
Environment Secretary said:
Too many water companies are letting down their customers – with
leaking pipes, poor water supply and low water
pressure.
The Government is holding water companies to account by making
them put money back into people's pockets when they fail their
customers.
The government is also working with water companies to expand the
list of circumstances that will trigger compensation payments.
Compensation for when customers are asked to boil their water due
to contaminated supply will come into force later this
year.
The standards, outlined in the Guaranteed Standards Scheme, set
out a baseline for customer service in the water sector. They
include providing timely restoration of water supply following an
interruption, responding to written complaints and managing the
risk of sewer flooding.
This comes as part of the government's action to cut sewage
spills and attract investment in the sector, including:
- Strengthening regulation to ensure polluting water bosses who
cover up their crimes now face two-year prison sentences.
- Banning unfair bonuses for bosses of six polluting water
companies.
- Launching a record 81 criminal investigations into sewage
pollution.
- Securing £104bn in private sector investment to upgrade
crumbling sewage pipes and cut sewage by nearly half by 2030.
- Launching the Independent Water Commission led by Sir John
Cunliffe to modernise the water industry and work with companies
and their investors to make the industry one of growth and
opportunity.
Mike Keil, Chief Executive of the Consumer Council for
Water (CCW), said:
Customers expect to be treated fairly when their water company
lets them down, so we're delighted the Government has moved at
pace to strengthen service standards.”
This should give people peace of mind they now have far stronger
protection from a much broader range of water company service
failures - from the slow installation of water meters to the
mishandling of debt recovery. As well as bolstering payments for
thousands of customers, these changes mark an important step
towards restoring trust in the water sector which is at an
all-time low.
, Chief Executive of Ofwat
said:
We welcome these improvements to guaranteed standards and
payments for customers.
When customers suffer from problems like low pressure,
disruptions to supply or sewer flooding they can experience major
stress and inconvenience, and payment amounts must recognise the
disruption to their lives when standards are not met.
These new changes are another way to make sure customers are
protected when companies get it wrong.
Annex A Summary of updates to payment
levels for existing standards:
|
Existing Standards
|
Coming into force date
|
Old GSS payment
|
New GSS payments
|
Uplift
|
|
Household
|
Non-Household
|
Household
|
Non-Household
|
Household
|
Non-Household
|
|
Appointments not made properly
|
2 July
|
£20
|
£40
|
100%
|
|
Appointments not kept
|
Uprated payments to existing standard – 2 July
Amended standard 1 Oct
|
£20
|
£50
|
150%
|
|
Account queries not actioned on time
|
Uprated payments to existing standard – 2 July
Amended standard 1 Oct
|
£20
|
£40
|
100%
|
|
Requests to change payment arrangements not actioned on
time
|
Uprated payments to existing standard – 2 July
Amended standard 1 Oct
|
£20
|
£40
|
100%
|
|
Complaints not actioned on time
|
Uprated payments to existing standard – 2 July
Amended standard 1 Oct
|
£20
|
£40
|
100%
|
|
Less than 48 hours' notice of planned supply interruption
of more than 4 hours
|
2 July
|
£20
|
£50
|
£50
|
£100
|
150%
|
100%
|
|
Supply not restored on time
|
2 July
|
£20, and £10 for each subsequent 24 hours
|
£50, and £25 for each subsequent 24 hours
|
£50, and £50 for each subsequent 12 hours
|
£100, and £100 for each subsequent 12 hours
|
150% for initial payment,
400% for subsequent payment and halved subsequent payment
period
|
100% (for both initial and subsequent payment)
and halved subsequent payment period
|
|
Low pressure
|
2 July
|
£25
(once per financial year)
|
£50, up to five payments per financial year – equivalent to
just over the average water bill.
Automatic £250pa for customers with ongoing low pressure
|
100% and increased annual maximum by 10x
|
|
Internal flooding from sewers
|
2 July
|
Payment equal to annual sewerage charges
(Minimum payment of £150. Maximum of £1000)
|
Payment equal to annual sewerage charges, at minimum of
£300 and maximum of £2000
|
Min and Max increased by 100%, with provision for repeated
incidents in a year to warrant further increases to the
maximum (see fig 1)
|
|
External flooding from sewers
|
2 July
|
Payment equal to 50% of annual sewerage charges
(Minimum payment of £75. Maximum of £500)
|
Payment equal to 50% of annual sewerage charges, at minimum
of £150 and maximum of £1000
|
Min and Max increased by 100%, with provision for repeated
incidents in a year to warrant further increases to the
maximum (see fig 1)
|
|
Failure to make automatic GSS payment
|
2 July
|
£10-20 depending on standard
|
£10-50 depending on standard
|
£40
|
£100
|
100-200% depending on standard, consolidating all payments
to one value for households and one value for
non-households
|
Figure 1 – Repeat Sewer Flooding payment bands
|
|
Max
|
Min
|
|
Internal Sewer Flooding
|
£2000 + £500 per repeat occurrence within 12 months
|
£300 + £100 per repeat occurrence within 12 months
|
|
External Sewer Flooding
|
£1000 + £250 per repeat occurrence within 12 months
|
£150 + £50 per repeat occurrence within 12 months
|
Summary of new standards
|
New Standard
|
Coming into force
|
Information
|
GSS payments
|
|
Household
|
Non-Household
|
|
Core Priority Services
|
1 Oct
|
The company must keep a list of customers whose
circumstances (such as medical or disability) are such that
they require additional services to be provided in certain
circumstances.
The company must provide the relevant service to the
customer in response to an incident and must inform the
customer if they are added to the Core Priority Services
Register.
|
£100
|
N/A
|
|
Domestic Customer in Arrears
|
1 Oct
|
Giving information relating to the customer's non-payment
to a Credit Reference Agency or beginning legal proceedings
to recover the debt without giving the customer an
‘outstanding charges notice' and an opportunity to make
payment arrangements or make representations in connection
with them.
|
£150
|
N/A
|
|
Reading of Meters
|
1 Oct
|
The water company must read a customer's water meter
(excluding smart meters) at least once every 13 months
|
£40 (£80 for each subsequent 13-month period)
|
£40 (£80 for each subsequent 13-month period)
|
|
Moving to Measured Charging Supply of Water
|
1 Oct
|
The water company must (subject to some exceptions) install
a water meter upon request and then begin to charge the
customer on the basis of the volume of water used.
If the company fails to do this within the relevant time,
the water company must pay the customer.
|
Payment equivalent to charges payable in the period from
the date that charging by volume should have started until
meter fitted and charging by volume begins.
|
N/A
|
|
Water Quality Notices
|
1 Oct
|
Payment is to be made to a customer if a water quality
notice is served and supply is not restored by the end of a
48-hour period.
|
If a notice is in place for longer than 48 hours, £40 plus
£20 per additional 24 hours that the notice is in place, up
to a maximum of the customer's annual water supply (not
including sewerage services) bill
|
If a notice is in place for longer than 48 hours, £60 plus
£40 per additional 24 hours that the notice is in place, up
to a maximum of the customer's annual water supply (not
including sewerage services) bill
|
|
Indexation
|
2 July
|
The payment amounts will increase in line with the consumer
price index when this increases by 10% (using September
2025 as the baseline) and rounded to the nearest £5
|
|
|
