REG - Water Services Auth - Wessex Water to pay £11m enforcement package

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11/11/2025 08:15

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RNS Number : 9328G  Water Services Regulation Authority  11 November 2025

Tuesday 11 November 2025

OFFICIAL - SENSITIVE

Ofwat proposes £11 million enforcement package for Wessex Water for wastewater failures

 

·      £11m to be paid by the company and its shareholders, for
the benefit of the environment and customers.

·      The company will also be required to rectify any identified
breaches and ensure its future compliance.

·      A public consultation will now follow before Ofwat's final
decision

 

Ofwat has today (11 November 2025) proposed an £11m enforcement
package following its findings that Wessex Water failed
to operate, maintain and upgrade its wastewater network adequately to
ensure that they could cope with the flows of sewage and wastewater.

 

Wessex Water and its shareholders will fund a total enforcement package
of £11m, none of which will be paid for by customers or added to
bills. This additional investment will be committed by the
company and is over and above the investment Wessex Water is required
to deliver under the price control and separate from the steps the company
will need to take to become compliant. The package includes:

 

·      Helping private landowners to seal their sewer pipes to prevent
unnecessary groundwater reaching Wessex Water's network;

·      Reducing spills at specific storm overflows through
investment which would have otherwise occurred beyond 2030;

·      Installing additional monitoring equipment to better enable
management of flows at treatment works and storm overflows;

·      Helping customers to sustainably manage rainwater at their
properties.

 

This announcement marks the sixth case in Ofwat's largest and most complex set
of investigations into all companies and their management of their wastewater
treatment works and networks. It follows the conclusion of cases against
Yorkshire Water, Thames Water, Northumbrian Water, Anglian Water and South
West Water earlier this year, which have resulted in enforcement action
worth more than £240m.

 

Lynn Parker, Senior Director for Enforcement at Ofwat, said:

 

"Our investigation has found that Wessex Water failed
to effectively operate, maintain and upgrade its wastewater assets,
which meant there were spills from storm overflows when
there shouldn't have been. To their credit, the company has been one of
the more proactive in investigating and rectifying the problems identified.
However, there remain breaches which must be accounted for and corrected.

 

"We understand that the public wants to see transformative change. That is why
we are prioritising this sector-wide investigation which has so far
held five wastewater companies to account to the tune of £240m in
enforcement redress, benefitting the local environment and the
customers those companies serve."

 

Wessex Water has invested more than £150 million since 2020 on upgrading
storm overflows in its region. It already has plans in place for 2025-30 to
address many of the compliance issues identified at its wastewater treatment
works and network. However, there remains further measures that the company
needs to take to ensure that it is fully compliant and which Ofwat will
continue to closely monitor.

 

A consultation will now be open to the public and key stakeholders to offer
any final comments before Ofwat's final decision is made. The consultation
can be found here: https://www.ofwat.gov.uk/consultations/
(https://www.ofwat.gov.uk/consultations/)

 

ENDS

 

Notes for editors

 

·      You can find a link to the relevant enforcement documents
here: https://www.ofwat.gov.uk/regulated-companies/investigations/open-cases/enforcement-cases/
(https://www.ofwat.gov.uk/regulated-companies/investigations/open-cases/enforcement-cases/)
 

·      Ofwat can impose financial penalties of up to 10% of a company's
relevant turnover. In deciding whether to impose a penalty and the level of
that penalty, Ofwat will take account of the particular facts and
circumstances of the case under consideration to establish the appropriate
level of penalty to impose.

·      Had this enforcement package not been proposed, Ofwat would
have proposed imposing a penalty where the money would have been returned
to the Consolidated Fund operated by HM Treasury. 

·      The £11m enforcement package the company has proposed is
greater than if a penalty were otherwise imposed on the company (which
would be £10m, or 2.5% of Wessex Water's annual turnover).

·      Instead, the undertakings would mean that the money will
remain in the water sector and be spent on making improvements to service for
the benefit of Wessex Water's customers and the local environment.

 

Impact of the Independent Water Commission final report:

 

The UK government has set out a new direction for the water sector with the
formation of a new regulator in England. This marks an opportunity to reset
the sector, so it delivers better outcomes for customers and the
environment.

 

Ofwat will now work with the government and other regulators to form this new
body in England, combining Ofwat with the Drinking Water Inspectorate and
including elements of the Environment Agency and Natural England. We will also
continue to engage with the Welsh Government and contribute to discussions on
the options for Wales.

 

Until these new arrangements are in place, we will keep working hard to drive
water companies to improve performance and deliver maximum value for
customers, communities, and the environment.

 

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