Ofwat wants homes with sprinklers and hot tubs to pay more for their water

Households could be charged more if they use sprinklers or hot tubs under plans being urged by the water regulator.

Households that have a higher than average water use could be put on a different tariff to those on low or average levels under plans to penalise non-essential use.

This could include households that have swimming pools, hot tubs or use large-scale sprinkler systems.

Bills could be cut for those who save water and help reduce pollution and flooding risks by using water butts or installing permeable driveways.

The Government wants to cut household water use by around a third in coming decades as climate change and growing populations put pressure on supply.

Failure to tackle leaks

But water companies have been criticised for failing to manage their resources and tackle leaks after customers were placed under hosepipe bans during the drought this summer.

Ofwat is calling on water companies to trial billing schemes to encourage customers to cut their water use and help households with the cost of living crisis.

But it notes that premium tariffs for high water use households has “not generally” been found to reduce demand in countries where it has been tried including Australia, Spain and the US.

Several water companies are understood to back the proposals and are looking at plans to charge high water users more.

Other proposals from the regulator include charging more during times of high demand, or during a drought, to encourage demand reduction and reducing bills during winter.

Raising bills for high water users would also lead to lower bills for households using less, as overall water company profits are limited by the regulator.

But Ofwat warns that it could penalise big families by charging them at a premium rate even if individuals have an average water consumption.

The Consumer Council for Water (CCW), which represents billpayers’ interests, said that pricing schemes should not penalise poorer households.

“Given the mounting pressure on our water resources and people’s budgets, we think there is value in exploring the potential for using tariff structures to incentivise people to reduce their water consumption, while giving them more control over their bills,” Andy White from the CCW said.

“Our independent review of water affordability, carried out for the UK and Welsh governments last year, recommended that in exploring innovative tariffs it is vital to ensure they do not add more pressure to low-income households.”

Such schemes would require households to install water meters, which are currently mandatory only in areas classified as being “water-stressed”. Some 60 per cent of households are already using water meters and are billed based on their usage.

Rising cost of living

Companies would be expected to identify homes that have leaks on their property, based on their water use, and alert the homeowner to avoid them facing high charges Ofwat said.

"We are all very aware of the impact of the rising cost of living and we want to see the water sector become more active, assertive and inventive to support customers who are struggling to make ends meet,” David Black, the CEO of Ofwat, said.

The watchdog will change rules on how water companies can charge customers to enable the new tariffs. It wants them to take the environment into consideration as well as keeping bills low.

The Government wants to see individual water use cut from an average of 140 litres per person each day to 100 litres. Critics argue that companies should do more to tackle their own leaks, which account for around 20 per cent of supply, and to store and transport water.

Permeable driveways can stop water running off into the country’s overwhelmed and poorly maintained sewage system, which can contribute to runoffs into rivers and beaches.