Failing water firms must return £114m to customers

WATER companies that are underperforming must return £114million to customers next year by cutting bills, a regulator has warned.

- Steph Spyro

Ofwat said most firms are "falling short" on performance measures around leakages, supply and reducing pollution.

Mike Keil, senior director at the Consumer Council for Water, said: "It's right and fair that customers get their money back when they don't receive the services they were promised by some water companies."

Thames Water must return the most at more than £100million.

Ofwat judges the performance of water companies in England and Wales each year against the "stretching" targets they set in 2019 for a five-year period until 2025.

Struggling

If they fail to meet these, Ofwat restricts the amount of money they can take from customers.