Water bills could rise by huge £150 a year as companies demand more money

02 October 2023 , 09:57

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Water companies are planning to invest around £96billion between 2025 to 2030 (Image: Getty Images)

Water bills could increase by as much as £150 a year by 2030 to fix issues within the system.

Water companies are planning to invest around £96billion between 2025 to 2030 which is to build 10 new reservoirs, cut leaks and stop the equivalent of 6,800 Olympic swimming pools-worth of sewage spills. Water companies said the planned investment would cut leakages by more than a quarter by 2030 compared with the start of the decade.

Water UK, the industry body, said the investment was a near doubling of current levels. However, to fund the investment, household bills would need to rise. The increase in bills will vary across companies, Water UK said the average water bill will be £7 per month higher - or £84 a year - by 2025 compared to 2023 prices, rising to £13 per month more by 2030. This is equivalent to £156 more per year.

Under the plans, nature-based schemes to manage rainwater will be created and technology brought in to better manage flows. Alongside this Water UK said 30,000 new jobs and 4,000 apprenticeships would be created to help deliver the plan.

The plans have been put forward to the regulator Ofwat today to examine. Ofwat said it would “forensically scrutinise” the sector’s blueprint to ensure the hike in bills over the five-year period is “justified”. The final decision on the investment plans is set to be made by the end of next year.

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David Henderson, chief executive of Water UK, said he recognised increased bills were “never welcome” but urged regulator Ofwat to sign off on the proposals so the sector could counter sewage spills “as fast as possible”.

The move to increase prices again could face a backlash as households continue to battle with cost-of-living pressures and high inflation levels. Water bills rose in April of this year with the average bill rising by £31 a year, taking the average yearly bill to £448. Water UK said the 7.5% rise was the biggest increase in twenty years.

Water UK said companies understood the financial pressures households were facing and were more than doubling the number of those that were eligible to receive financial support with bills, to 3.2million, up from 2million.

Ruby Flanagan