Water company complaints fall in UK

Customer complaints fell by nearly 15% last year, the Consumer Council for Water says, but several firms have been warned about poor service

Water companies struggled with new billing systems last year. Photograph: Cate Gillon/Getty

Customer complaints to water companies in England and Wales fell last year, although a handful of organisations have been warned about ongoing poor service, the industry's consumer body revealed today.

The Consumer Council for Water said overall complaints to water companies in England and Wales dropped last year by nearly 15%.

With the exception of metering, all major categories of complaints – billing and charges, water and sewerage services – have triggered fewer complaints from consumers.

A few companies had significant improvements in complaint figures as they recovered from problems in previous years, bringing the industry average down. However, other companies saw rising disatisfaction among consumers. Complaints concerning United Utilities rose by more than 36%, and United Utilities, Southern Water, South East Water and South West Water had the highest number of complaints for the number of customers they serve.

Companies showing a drop in complaints included Severn Trent Water with 40% fewer complaints, and Thames Water with nearly 27% fewer complaints on the previous year's figures. Southern Water's complaints dropped by 48% but it still had a high number of complaints compared to other companies.

Other companies continued to receive relatively few complaints, including Yorkshire Water, Wessex Water, Portsmouth Water and Sutton and East Surrey Water.

Dame Yve Buckland, chair of the Consumer Council for Water, said: "We have pressed water companies with poor complaint numbers to improve their performance, and it is encouraging to see the response from many companies. For example, complaints to Severn Trent Water and Thames Water both dropped for a second year in a row."

She said customers were beginning to tell the council they could see improvements in service. "Of those who needed to get in touch with their water company last year, 81% told us they were happy with the way the contact was handled. The year before that figure was 71%. At the same time, nine out of 10 customers tell us that they are satisfied with the service provided by their water company."

Buckland added that while the figures were a step in the right direction, it was not good news for all water customers.

"We are still particularly concerned with South East Water's complaint figures. For a smaller company that only provides water, and is not involved in the sewerage side of the business, South East Water's complaint figures are very poor, and they have been for several years," she said.

The water industry trade body, Water UK, said it was "pleased" by the overall downward trend, adding: "The number of complaints investigated is also down.

"The industry dealt successfully with 99.4% of complaints through their own processes. It is also pleasing to see that several companies have recovered well from one-off difficulties linked to new billing systems, which had caused temporary complaint surges in the past."