Thames Water and 10 other water utilities have been fined a total of £150m for missing performance targets and will have to refund the cash to customers, the industry regulator said on Monday.
However, rising inflation is more than likely to wipe out any reductions as companies use the consumer prices index to calculate rises in household bills.
Inflation currently sits at 8.6%. Regulator Ofwat issued the latest round of fines after the 11 firms failed industry benchmarks on issues such as supply interruptions, pollution incidents and internal sewer flooding.
Refunds will be given back to customers in 2023 and 2024. Thames Water and Southern Water received the two largest fines of £51m and £28.3m respectively.
There was outrage earlier this year after investigations found raw sewage being illegally pumped into rivers and the sea around the UK. The government voted against measures to toughen up regulation that would stop such practices.
“When it comes to delivering for their customers, too many water companies are falling short,” said Ofwat chief executive David Black.
“We expect companies to improve their performance every year; where they fail to do so, we will hold them to account.”
“All water companies need to earn back the trust of customers and the public, and we will continue to challenge the sector to improve.”
The best performing companies were Severn Trent Water in the South West and United Utilities in the North West. They will be permitted to generate an extra £62.9m and £24.1m in customer bills respectively.
Breakdown of fines for water companies:
Affinity Water – £0.8m
Anglian Water – £8.5m
Dwr Cymru – £8m
Hafren Dyfrdwy – £0.4m
Northumbrian Water – £20.3m
SES Water – £0.3m
South East Water – £3.2m
South West Water – £13.3m
Southern Water – £28.3m
Thames Water – £51m
Yorkshire Water – £15.2
Firms allowed to charge more – and by how much
Bristol Water – £0.6m
Portsmouth Water – £0.8m
Severn Trent Water – £62.9
South Staffs Water £3.3m
United Utilities – £24.1m
Wessex Water – £4.4m
Reporting by Frank Prenesti at Sharecast.com
