A report published today by the Consumer Council for Water to coincide with the publication of Ofwat’s review of the Beast from the East disruption says nearly three quarters of households and businesses that were off supply did not receive any alternative emergency supplies of water .

The consumer watchdog said the lack of emergency water supplies and poor communication from some water companies made life “needlessly more difficult” for thousands of homes and businesses when they were left without running water during March’s severe cold weather.

The research by CCWater sheds light on the experiences of consumers across some of the worst-affected water company regions.

Companies reported to Ofwat that more than 200,000 customers across England and Wales suffered a loss of supply of four hours or longer following the sudden thaw.

The study says that consumers who found themselves in vulnerable circumstances were among the worst affected, with the vast majority (93%) saying they did not get any additional support from their company.

In some instances there was an over-reliance on a single social media channel

CCWater is now calling on all water companies – including those whose customers were not cut off – to act on its research findings, which also show about two out of five consumers were left in the dark with no communication from their water company. In some instances there was an over-reliance on a single social media channel.

The research report, produced by SYSTRA reflects the views of water consumers in England and Wales who were directly affected by the ‘freeze-thaw’ incident which left tens of thousands of households and businesses without a water supply for, in some cases, several days in early March 2018.

Both the analysis and the research findings highlight not just where the water companies need to do better in relation to incidents of this nature but also examples of good practice. The key themes are summarised as:

• water companies’ preparedness;
• consumer and stakeholder communications;
• provision of alternative supplies for those without water;
• help for vulnerable consumers;
• and compensation arrangements for those without water for long periods.

CCWater commented:

“With this in mind, it’s worth noting that a quarter of consumers affected by the freeze-thaw incident now have a different opinion of their water company, for either better or worse depending upon how well the company handled the incident.”

“Water companies which manage such incidents well therefore have a big opportunity to improve consumers’ perceptions, whilst companies which don’t handle them well, clearly risk damaging consumers’ perceptions, and potentially not just in the short term.”

CCWater is now looking to all water companies in England and Wales to learn lessons from the incident and to implement improvements to how they prepare for and manage similar incidents in future.

Tony Smith, Chief Executive of the Consumer Council for Water, said:

“The most affected consumers felt badly let down by their water company, with little or no information and in many cases insufficient alternative supplies of water even for the most vulnerable households.”

“As well as good compensation, consumers will want to see companies heavily penalised if they don’t act now to put these failures right.”

According to the study, the majority of households (84%) were satisfied with the amount of compensation they expected to receive. However, significantly fewer businesses were satisfied (62%) with the compensation settlement which many felt would fail to cover their losses.

CCWater has recommended a review be carried out of the statutory compensation scheme – called the Guaranteed Standards Scheme (GSS) – to ensure it is fit for purpose for any major incidents in the future.

The water watchdog will now be pressing the industry to take on board its research report recommendations. These include steps to provide information quicker and more effectively to consumers, with more ‘feet on the ground’ to reach people. Improvements should also be made to the provision of emergency water through more local water stations and door-to-door distribution, along with better support for businesses that rely heavily on water.

Click here to download Customers’ experiences of water supply interruptions following the freeze-thaw events of March 2018 Final Report