Southern Water sees the largest rise in complaints, while South East Water enjoys the biggest drop.
Water complaints have increased at almost half of water companies across England and Wales, according to the Consumer Council for Water (CCWater) .
The watchdog's latest report found that 10 of the 21 water companies received more complaints than in the previous year, with some reporting substantial rises.
Southern Water was the most complained about firm for the fourth year in a row, with a 10.3% increase.
The company, which covers Kent, Sussex, Hampshire and the Isle of Wight, received about 77 complaints per 10,000 connections – more than double the industry standard of 33.7.
Elsewhere, complaints to Dwr Cymru increased by 115.1%, while Bournemouth Water’s increased by 90.6%.
Affinity Water, which provides water to parts of Bedfordshire, Berkshire, Buckinghamshire, Essex, Hertfordshire, Surrey, west London, Kent and Essex, saw an increase of 82.3%.
All four companies have been told to report back to the watchdog, outlining how they plan to improve their service.
Tony Smith, chief executive of the CCWater, said: “What is particularly alarming is the very substantial increase in complaints some companies have reported.”
“We can’t allow the good progress that has been made by the industry in recent years to be reversed. That’s why we have asked four of the poorest performing companies to report to us by the end of October on what action they have taken, or are planning to take, to reduce complaints.”
How to complain - and actually win
Rise in complaints
Complaints had actually been going down in recent years, but the latest figures suggest the trend could be at an end.
The overall number of written complaints to the industry has fallen for the eighth year running, but only by a teeny 0.5%, down from 106,693 to 106,196. Phone complaints also continued to fall.
On the other side of the spectrum, South East Water had the largest drop in complaints (down 38.2%), followed by South Staffs Water (down 32.5%), Severn Trent Water (down 22.9%) also reporting large falls.
Wessex Water is the best water and sewerage company with another 19.2% reduction in written complaints.
Portsmouth Water (down 18.9%) is back on the top spot as both the leading water-only company and within the whole industry.
Non-household customers, including businesses, were almost twice more likely to complain to their water company than household customers.
But non-households can vote with their feet from next April, so they’ll be able to switch to a different water retailer to provide services including billing, meter reading and customer service.
Read: What does the average household bill cost a year?
How to make a complaint
If you have an issue with your water company, the CCWater has provided 3 steps to getting it resolved.
1. Follow your water and sewerage company’s complaints procedure.
According to CCWater, sending a letter or email is the best way to contact a company as you’ll be better able to explain the problem and achieve a resolution.
The Guaranteed Standards Scheme (GSS) requires the company to reply within 10 working days of receiving your written complaint.
If it fails to, you are entitled to an automatic credit on your account.
Alternatively, you can make a telephone complaint and a company agent can write down what you say and agree it with you. however, this is regulated differently to written complaints.
2. Escalate your complaint
If your issue isn’t resolve, ask them to escalate your complaint to management.
3. Contact CCWater
If your complaint is still unresolved, contact the watchdog. You can contact them anytime and it’s free to do so. CCWater says it will reply within five working days.
You can submit an online complaint form or click here to find the number of your local office.
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