Regulators & stakeholders
Like the rest of the water industry, we are regulated by three government bodies: Water Services Regulation Authority (Ofwat); the Drinking Water Inspectorate (DWI); and the Environment Agency (EA). We also liaise with other regulatory bodies.
These regulators are industry watchdogs and they lay down minimum standards of service that we must reach and maintain. We feel that the best way to make sure we meet these standards is to always strive to exceed them.
Our regulators and their role are outlined below:
Ofwat
Ofwat's role is to look after the interests of consumers. The organisation has once again rated us as one of the highest performing water companies in its annual overall performance assessment. This rating is based upon the levels of service that we achieve relating to how many interruptions there are to our customers' supplies, how we deal with our contact with customers and our water quality compliance.
DWI (Drinking Water Inspectorate)
The Drinking Water Inspectorate (DWI) is responsible for assessing the quality of drinking water in England and Wales. It monitors our compliance with the Water Supply (Water Quality) Regulations 2000, taking enforcement action if standards are not being met, and appropriate action when water is unfit for human consumption.
EA - Environment Agency
We work closely with the Environment Agency in order to ensure that any adverse impact we may have upon the environment is kept to a minimum. Our interaction with the EA includes many aspects of environmental regulation, including the granting of abstraction licences that stipulate how much water we may take from our sources, and discharge consents that govern any discharges from our operations.
Consumer Council for Water – Central
We are committed to providing our customers with a quality water supply and giving value for money. If you have any complaints about our service we have an audited complaints procedure. If we are unable to resolve your concerns, Consumer Council for Water – Central will then investigate the matter on your behalf.
Customer Consultative Committee
A recent report from the Customer Consultative Committee praised us for maintaining high standards of service while making every effort to become more efficient. The report demonstrates that we are a leading edge company providing evidence that good standards of customer service do not incur higher costs. We will continue to search for ways of making cost efficient improvements to our service.
While we are proud to be able to provide our customers with the highest levels of service and the lowest prices, it is the feedback that we receive from our customers that gives us the greatest pleasure. Customer satisfaction feedback has shown that 94% of customers are happy with the service provided.
