South West Water has launched a new tariff trial which will see all household customers in Cornwall receive a credit to their bill if the county collectively reduces its water consumption between 1st February and 30 April.

£30 will be credited to each customer if a 10% reduction in water use is seen across Cornwall, or a £10 credit will be given if demand reduces by 5% over the same period.

The introduction of new and innovative tariffs to deliver fairer charging structures, where customers who use less, pay less is a key priority for South West Water’s 2025-2030 Business Plan.

Laura Flowerdew, South West Water’s Chief Customer and Digital Officer, said:

“Our customers have told us they want us to find new ways of charging and we want to make sure that the bills our customers pay are fair and reflect their usage.

“Over the course of this year and beyond, we will continue to engage with customers and stake-holders, and work with our communities, to run pilots to understand what works well and what our customers consider to be fair ways of charging."

The company will use this knowledge to work with customers, Government, regulators and the Consumer Council for Water to help to roll out improved ways of charging across the region.

South West Water has also launched a new campaign to support customers in becoming water efficient and benefitting from more affordable bills whilst helping to protect the environment.

The Water is Precious campaign will work with customers to demonstrate the true value of water in the region and help them to save both water and save money.

The utility said climate change is making it more difficult to reliably capture and store water and its working to deliver more drinkable water from an increasingly scarce natural resource.

Through the Water is Precious campaign, the company is asking customers to use water more efficiently, and is playing its part with a £125 million investment to increase water resources.

By repurposing disused quarries, introducing desalination to Cornwall for the first time, and continuing to find and fix more leaks than ever before, by 2025 it will boost the region’s resources in Cornwall by around 45% and in Devon by around 30%.

Laura Flowerdew, South West Water’s Chief Customer and Digital Officer, continued:

“Capturing, filtering, treating, storing and delivering water is at the heart of our business, but in doing this we need to minimise the cost to our ecosystems and our landscapes as we take water out of the environment and build more storage and infrastructure.

“Reducing water consumption is important not just for the hotter months of the year. Through the Water is Precious campaign we’re working with customers year-round to make positive changes that will conserve water, save money and protect the beautiful environment we all treasure.”