Water companies trigger 'deeply concerning' 84% surge in complaints to industry watchdog

Water companies trigger 'deeply concerning' 84% surge in complaints to industry watchdog Inflation busting price hikes by water companies in April last year fuelled a sharp rise in complaints to both the firms themselves and the industry watchdog Britain’s water watchdog says it is “deeply concerned” after it saw a record 84% surge in complaints about suppliers last year. The Consumer Council for Water said it dealt with more than 15,100 cases from customers after they failed to resolve the issue with their firm. The increase, from around 8,200 the prior year, marked the biggest increase in its 20 year history. It came as the overall number of complaints made by households directly to their water company surged by 56% to more than 321,300 - equivalent to almost 900 every single day last year. The huge tally comes amid angry about water companies for soaring prices at the same time as they are seen to be failing to tackle a leaks and sewage crisis. The sharp rise was primarily driven by growing concerns over bills, with complaints made to water companies about billing increasing by 72% and almost doubling among the cases brought to CCW. It came as households were hit with inflation-shattering water bill increases of up to £224 a year in April last year - the biggest wave of hikes since privatisation - with suppliers claiming it was needed to fund long overdue investment in the country’s creaking network of pipe and sewage plants. Mike Keil, chief executive of CCW, said: “It’s deeply troubling to see such an unprecedented rise in complaints. These numbers reflect just how dissatisfied many people still are with the state of the water sector and the enormous task water companies face in rebuilding consumer trust. “People have been hit with significant bill rises and are impatient to see the benefits where they live – whether that’s a more reliable service, cleaner rivers or effective and empathetic support when they are struggling to pay their bill. Companies need to be clear and open with their customers about how they are investing people’s money to deliver real improvements.” The watchdog assesses each company’s performance on the number of complaints it receives for every 10,000 households it serves, and the effort customers have to put in to get their complaint resolved. Thames Water and South West Water rated “poor” for both measures, making them the worst performing companies. Portsmouth Water and Bristol Water were the only companies to score “good”. The results come amid mounting pressure on the government to bring the water industry back under some form of public control. A Parliamentary debate this week heard claims that doing so could save £22billion over five years from not paying dividends and interest on loans. Labour MP Paul Davies, who led a Westminster Hall debate, said ditching the “disastrous” privatised model would also go some way to restoring the public’s faith in the sector. He cited a YouGov survey that found 82% of Brits feel the water industry should be publicly owned. up from 59% in 2017. Water Minister Emma Hardy said Andy Burnham becoming PM would “open up options that were previously not available - more things are on the table. We are working through things right now across government.”