Ofwat is consulting on new standards expected of water companies for how they should operate, grow and maintain their priority services registers (PSR) of customers that need extra help. The regulator estimates that as many as 52% of households in England and Wales are likely to be eligible for PSR services.

The new PSR standards build on the vulnerability guidance set out earlier this year by the regulator and discussions at this year’s joint Ofwat/Ofgem Vulnerability Summit.

The consultation document sets out the proposed standards Ofwat expects all water companies to achieve when using their priority services registers to support household customers in England and Wales from 1 April 2025 onwards.

The standards will be focused around five key areas:

• To define Ofwat’s expectations for water companies around what a PSR is, what it should be called, and the requirement to have one;
• To set out the needs and services, including who a PSR should help, and what kind of help it should give;
• Water companies must continue to build on the good work they have done so far of growing their PSRs with eligible customers;
• Data checking so that lists are kept up to date and accurate; and
• Expectations around how companies should handle adding customers to their PSRs and how they should communicate with customers about their registration.

Ofwat said significant progress has already been made by companies in the 2020-25 period with PSRs growing from less than 2% of households in England and Wales in 2020, to over 10% today.

However, Ofwat says much still needs to be done - the regulator is estimating that as many as 52% of households in England and Wales are likely to be eligible for PSR services.

Ofwat developed its estimate of the overall numbers of households in England and Wales by using data from the 2021 census and analysing the number of households who met at least one of the following criteria:

• had at least one occupant who was classified as disabled under the Equality Act 2010;
• had at least one occupant over the pensionable age; and
• had no adults who were proficient in English or Welsh.

The dataset included a total of 24,751,770 households across England and Wales. Ofwat’s analysis identified that 12,966,189 households met at least one of the criteria to be eligible for the PSR. This is equivalent to 52% of the households across England and Wales.

Lynn Parker, Senior Director for Casework, Enforcement and Customers at Ofwat said:

“We have been challenging companies to improve their customer service and drive-up standards. But it’s when things go wrong that the response from companies is most critical.

“For us to see meaningful change, it needs to start with companies focusing on a customer-driven culture and leadership. We have seen too many examples where customers, who are in a more vulnerable position, are being let down by water companies communicating poorly or not holding accurate information.

“That is why it is so important we continue to raise awareness, so customers know what they are entitled to, and the help water companies can provide.”

Andy White, Senior Leader for Social Policy at the Consumer Council for Water (CCW), said:

“The move towards PSR standards is another important step to ensuring people who need support with their water services receive that help and it is of a consistently high standard. These standards should set out clearly what people can expect in terms of support, while ensuring their water company is held accountable for meeting customers’ individual needs effectively.”

In addition to the new PSR standards, Ofwat has also reviewed each water company’s proposed vulnerability strategy for meeting the needs of customers that need extra help. Many companies have put forward innovative plans in a number of areas, including using data sharing to identify customers who need support and improving support during incidents.

However, Ofway says some companies must go further in order to develop clear plans that will provide the right support for customers who need it. For example, showing they understand the causes of vulnerability in their area and developing ambitious targets and actions to address them.

The Priority Services Register new standards consultation is open until 8 January 2025 – click here to access the new standards consultation document.