We understand how much pressure the cost-of-living crisis has caused throughout our communities. As bills rise to keep pace, we want to make sure we’re providing support to help our customers. We have a variety of schemes in place to ease the pressure, such as debt repayment plans and discounted bills. Here’s a quick breakdown of what’s on offer.
Extra support
You might qualify for one of our schemes if:
- Your household income is low, or someone in your home receives a means-tested benefit.
- You have three children or more under 19 living at home or that someone living with you needs more water because of a medical condition.
- You haven’t been able to make a payment to us for a while.
How we can help:
We can cap your bills if you have a low income and a water meter installed at home with our WaterSure scheme. We can also put a limit on your charges for both water and wastewater services.
You can get Jobcentre Plus to pay us directly if you’re claiming a means-tested benefit such as Income Support. This could help you to cover any outstanding payments as well as your current charges.
If you’ve struggled to pay off your water bill and find yourself in debt, our NewStart scheme can help pay it off. You may qualify for the NewStart scheme if you currently owe us money and you haven’t made a payment for a while.
Our Essentials Tariff provides a discount of at least 45% on future bills, as well as a discount for pensioners on a low income.
To find out if you’re eligible for one of our payment schemes and how to apply click here.
Other Assistance
Alongside the support we provide for bills, we also have schemes available for customers in special circumstances.
If you're experiencing financial difficulty, our Hardship Find has three types of assistance on offer:
- A one-off bill reduction (of up to 50%)
- A debt write-off (of up to £2,000)
- A grant towards home appliances and furniture (up to £1,000)
If you’re a vulnerable customer or need access to water for medical reasons, we encourage you to sign up for our Priority Services Register. Being on the register means that in the event of your water going off, we’ll deliver bottled water to your home first.
We understand the pressure the rising cost of bills has had on our customers but we want to remind you that we’re here to help. Our dedicated team is on hand to provide support and will work closely with you to find a solution.
You can call our free number to speak directly with a member of the team on 0800 027 0363.