Ofwat and consumer watchdog CCW have published the findings of research into South East Water's incident response commissioned after thousands of the company's customers have faced repeat problems with their water supply.

After this happened again in June, Ofwat and CCW commissioned qualitative research that found that customers felt frustrated and unsupported because South East Water did not adequately communicate how long the problems would last or pay compensation to all those affected.

Over the last year, multiple significant water supply incidents affected South East Water customers within a short period of time. A freeze-thaw event impacted many thousands of people last winter and more recently, a high demand event meant thousands experienced supply interruptions, low pressure, or being off supply during mid-June.

Ofwat’s review of the freeze-thaw event found improvements were required to better protect customers in the future. For the June incident, the regulator wanted to hear directly from customers about what they had experienced, what went well and what improvements they would like to see.

The research study into the June water supply interruption is the first in a newly launched programme of incidents research for Ofwat and CCW.

Ofwat and CCW commissioned the research agency Blue Marble to conduct qualitative research with South East Water household customers who experienced water supply problems in mid-June. To understand customers’ experiences in detail customers were invited to participate in extended research discussions (90-minute focus groups or 60-minute interviews). This involved speaking to 43 customers using these approaches.

Customers were specifically recruited to help Ofwat and CCW understand a range of perspectives and experiences. This meant, for example, the research included some people who had no water coming from their taps for up to a week, whilst others had no water for a few days or intermittent water. It also included customers who are at different life stages and in different circumstances, including customers who may be vulnerable and/or reported that they or someone in their household was on the priority services register.

Key findings included:

Customers felt frustrated and lacked trust in the company

The research found widespread disappointment among participants about South East Water’s management of the June incident. The participants felt the company’s handling of the incident had made the experience worse for them. People felt frustrated and, in some cases, angry. There was a loss of trust in the company – particularly as participants felt that the company had not learnt lessons from previous water supply incidents. When customers were specifically asked to name what the company did well during the incident, many struggled to think of a response or answered ‘nothing’.

Communication a particular source of dissatisfaction

Communication from the company was a particular point of dissatisfaction. Participants felt the company should have been more proactive in telling people about the problems and realistic about how long the incident might go on for. Some participants were continually told the water would be restored in the next 24 hours, others were given no timeframe. This made it harder to manage than it otherwise would have been.

Participants reported feeling irritated by the tone of communication. Their impression was that the company was blaming customers (themselves) for the lack of supply, rather than taking responsibility. Further, those who had no water all week received communication from the company telling them to use less water. This felt insensitive and frustrating.

Dissatisfaction with level of support provided by South East Water

Another source of dissatisfaction was the amount of support provided by South East Water during the incident. Participants did not feel there was enough alternative water to meet their needs. Water stations were chaotic and water deliveries were sporadic. Some vulnerable customers who expected to receive help didn’t get water delivered. Very few participants were contacted by the company directly with an offer of support.

Participants explained that it was harder to manage as the incident went on. While people could manage for a day or so, once the incident went on for several days or longer, people needed to put in place coping strategies for hygiene and cleanliness, as well as drinking water. The research heard from people having to take drastic measures to manage without flushing toilets, including using their garden or a local forest. This had an impact on participants’ wellbeing.

Inadequate information about compensation available

Finally, although the guaranteed standards scheme sets out what payments should be paid to customers when their water supply is interrupted, only a small number of participants reported having received a compensation payment from South East Water. Some had contacted the company to ask about compensation but had been told they weren’t entitled to it. Many of the participants had experienced multiple supply incidents over the previous year, but few were aware of their right to compensation. The company had not proactively communicated this to many of them.

Improving support for customers when something goes wrong

This research shows that South East Water needs to improve its support for customers during incidents. Ofwat and CCW will monitor the company’s future performance in this area and expect it to engage with local stakeholders.

Ofwat has also said it is not satisfied with the information South East Water has provided so far – the regulator is requiring more detail as to what went wrong and what it will do.

Ofwat added that South East Water, and all water companies, must use the experiences of the customers who took part in the research to improve their support for customers. The research report sets out the actions that companies can take to better inform and help customers when something goes wrong, as well as what is required once an incident is over in terms of reassurance and compensation.

The regulator is consulting on introducing a customer-focused condition into companies’ licences, to provide a clear regulatory basis in relation to how companies treat their customers, including customers in vulnerable circumstances.

The report is the first in the programme of joint research launched in July by Ofwat and CCW. 

The programme will generate findings which:

• Help to better establish what customers’ expectations of companies are when incidents occur and how well these expectations are met
• Can be used by Ofwat and CCW to improve companies’ responses and management of incidents and people's experiences when incidents take place
• Support Ofwat’s wider regulatory work and inform CCW’s wider work on behalf of consumers

Click here to download the report in full