Water retail market opens

There is less than three months to go until the opening of the Water Retail Market when retailers will compete with each to offer customers a better price and service. There could be potential financial benefits and savings for organisations if they were to switch supplier or renegotiate with their current one.


From April 2017, businesses, charities and public sector organisations in England will be able to choose their provider of water and sewerage retail services. By switching or negotiating with the current retail provider, non-household customers could get a better price or a more tailored service. Retail water services include meter reading, billing and handling customer queries.
Consumer Council for Water (CCWater), the independent consumer body for the water industry in England and Wales, is working with organisations like Marches LEP to spread the news. CCWater’s research shows that many businesses may not know about the market when it opens and could miss out.
The benefits to customers will vary. Large businesses may look to retailers for help with consumption management or consolidated billing across multiple sites to simplify administration. Smaller organisations may simply want better customer service from a retailer. More regular bills, for example, could help them guard against unexpected surprises.
Read more about these changes on CCWater’s website here.