Sussex Homeowners Hit With Hosepipe Ban Call For Harsher Punishment For Failing Water Firms

Homeowners hit with a hosepipe ban after months of poor water supply say their provider should be stripped of its operating licence.

One resident in East Sussex said he and his neighbours had no water for 23 days before their taps were turned on again on Friday.

From Monday, they face a £1,000 fine if they flout a new hosepipe ban being introduced in the South East Water area.

One reason for the ban is that more people are working from home and using more water, said the company.

At the same time the firm, which supplies treated drinking water, admitted its reservoirs and underground aquifers were topped up.

The problem, it said, was that it can't treat that raw water quickly enough when demand for clean water increases.

Graeme McCracken, a semi-retired company director, said:

"It's happening consistently. In the last six months, we've had two outages of more than five days, one just before Christmas, and then the most recent one of 23 days.

"It's shocking that you can't supply water in this country.

"Now they've started blaming us, saying more people are working from home. I don't think that's a valid excuse. They've had three years to sort that one out. I don't believe it. It seems to be a distinct lack of investment."

Mr McCracken, who lives in Mark Cross near Tunbridge Wells, said he wrote to South East Water's boss accusing him of poor customer service and communication that would doom a company in a competitive market.

He said:

"The only reason he's currently got any customers left is because he's got a monopoly.

"And that's just not good enough, and there should be penalties. And Ofwat [the regulator] should be penalising them. They shouldn't be allowed to take dividends or bonuses until they've sorted out the infrastructure problems.

"They should be taking the licences away from companies that don't have minimum standards, the least they should be doing is saying there is no dividend."

South East Water CEO David Hinton apologised for recent shortages in an open letter on Friday and said the company was striving to overcome the problems.

He wrote:

"The rise of working from home has increased drinking water demand in commuter towns by around 20% over a very short period, testing our existing infrastructure.

"The severe lack of rainfall since April has increased demand for treated drinking water.

"Our reservoir and aquifer stocks of raw water, essential to our water supply but not ready to be used, are in a good position. However, demand for treated mains water, which takes time to process, and deliver was greater than we could meet."

He said recent hot weather had also increased demand as people tried to cool off, stay hydrated or tend to their gardens.

Among plans to improve supply are new reservoirs and extra clean water storage facilities.

'They never fix the leaks'

Matthew Spratt, who lives in Wadhurst, said:

"South East Water are trying to blame the local community for using too much water. And they're basically saying it's our fault for working from home.

"I don't accept that at all. I think what lies behind it is underinvestment."

Mr Spratt, a technology risk manager, said people were scared by the thought of waking up again to no water.

"In the heat recently, we couldn't wash, we couldn't cook, we couldn't flush our toilets.

"We were having to lug bottled water from our water station, which the water company only provided once they were under pressure from the parish council.

"If it's sunshine, we don't get water. If it's a bit cold, we don't get water.

"If they're doing a bit of work, we don't get water. And you can see everywhere there are lots of leaks. They never fix the leaks.

"I could walk you to a leak now that's been there for two years that they've just not bothered to fix."

He, too, said the regulator Ofwat should treat poor performing water companies more harshly, rather than simply fining them.

He said:

"I don't know why they just fine them. I think the water company views it as a cost of doing business. I think they should lose their licence and it should be given to someone who could actually invest property at the moment."