Water bills to rise by £31 per year over next five years as '60,000' homes without water in southern England

19 December 2024, 07:06 | Updated: 19 December 2024, 07:47

Household water bills in England and Wales will increase by an average £31 a year over the next five years, regulator Ofwat has announced.

This marks an increase of around 36% over the next five years.

Water companies had asked for a 40% increase, despite issues facing major suppliers.

Ofwat said the increase would pay for a £104 billion upgrade of the water sector to deliver "substantial, lasting, improvements for customers and the environment".

The news comes as almost 60,000 homes as well as a number of schools are without water after a “technical fault” at a Southern Water supply works.

Those under Southern Water will be hit with the biggest rise - 53%. The company had sought to hike bills by 84%.

Commenting on Ofwat’s decision, Secretary of State for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, Steve Reed, said: “Under the Conservatives, our sewage system crumbled.

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"They irresponsibly let water companies divert customers’ money to line the pockets of their bosses and shareholders.

“The public are right to be angry after they have been left to pay the price of Conservative failure.

“This Labour Government will ringfence money earmarked for investment so it can never be diverted for bonuses and shareholder payouts. We will clean up our rivers, lakes and seas for good.”

Ofwat chief executive David Black said, "We recognise it is a difficult time for many, and we are acutely aware of the impact that bill increases will have for some customers.

"That is why it is vital that companies are stepping up their support for customers who struggle to pay.

"We have robustly examined all funding requests to make sure they provide value for money and deliver real improvements while ensuring the sector can attract the levels of investment it needs to meet environmental requirements."

Properties in Southampton, Romsey, Eastleigh and Totton have been without water since Wednesday after a fault at Testwood water supply works prevented water from leaving the site.

The impacted areas could be without water until after the weekend, Southern Water said.

The water company has told customers it is working to correct the fault as it confirmed tankers had been sent to Southampton General Hospital and Princess Anne Hospital.

Schools still without water are unlikely to open until the error is fixed.

In a statement, Southern Water said: "We are working towards all customers being back in supply by the weekend.”

Southampton General Hospital said: "We are working with Southern Water on contingency arrangements to ensure our hospitals continue to maintain water supplies.

"We ask patients to continue to attend appointments as planned but to allow extra time for their journey and in accessing parking facilities, due to the access requirements being put in place to enable delivery of those supplies."

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