News
Warning Issued To Water Suppliers Over Leak Concerns
Environment secretary Michael Gove has issued a stark warning to water suppliers in the UK, saying that he has written to water regulator Ofwat asking it to investigate areas such as leaks, prices, shareholder payments and executive pay.
He said that if these concerns are not addressed, he is ready to give the regulator new powers, the BBC reports. In recent years, private water firms have come under fire after studies revealed that they both increased levels of debt and paid shareholders big dividends.
A University of Greenwich study found that such firms had earned around £18 billion in pre-tax profits in the last ten years, and paid around the same to shareholders collectively.
And yet there are concerns mounting over action being taken on both pollution levels and leaks, especially at Thames Water – a company that serves a quarter of the population. The company has already been handed a hefty fine for polluting the Thames, as well as being criticised for paying almost £2 billion in dividends in the last decade, the use of subsidiaries in tax haven the Cayman Islands and paying little corporation tax.
The first chief executive of Ofwat, Sir Ian Byatt, commented on the news, saying that if he still had the job he would enforce a ten per cent cut in prices. He would also bring in a dividend cap – if shareholder payouts become too great, prices would be cut in line with this.
If you’re not happy with your water company at the moment, the good news is that you can now – as a business – switch water supplier, which may alleviate a lot of your concerns.
In April last year, the retail water market went live, with the majority of businesses in England given the power to choose their own supplier for the very first time. Before then, you had no choice about where your water came from… yet it seems that there are still companies out there that aren’t aware they have this new freedom about their water supply.
Recent research from the Consumer Council for Water found that just two in five small to medium-sized enterprises know they’re able to switch – with the conclusion being drawn that more must be done to engage with business customers and make them aware that they can make their own decisions in this regard.
It is worth noting, however, that if you’re a non-household customer that’s currently served by a supplier in Wales, you will only be eligible to switch if you use over 50 million litres of water a year. If not, you’ll have to continue being served by your current regional water company.
To find out if you’re eligible, head to the Open Water website and use its step-by-step eligibility checker. There’s also lots of useful guidance on the site that should give you all the information you need.
If you need any further help or advice, get in touch with us at H2O Building Services today.