21 February 2007
Midland residents have been warned by Severn Trent Water that their bills will rise by four pence per day in order to pay for the "continued stream of investment" which will see over £1 million per day being spent between now and 2010.
Under the Ofwat-approved formula, actual average household bills for 2007-08 are to rise by around 5%, including inflation, from £267 a year to £283.
This increase – which will see consumers paying 77p per day - is based on the actual prices set in 2005-6 and does not take into account the refund received by Severn Trent's customers last year.
Including the £4 refund, which was given as a one-off payment after Ofwat declared the supplier had overcharged its customers, the average increase is 7.5%.
Severn Trent Water's Director of Customer Relations, Martin Kane, said that the supplier's priority is to make sure it can sustain the quality of service, after a survey revealed that its customers consider their top priority to be safe, clean water and reliable supplies of it.
Mr Kane also commented that the supplier needed to meet new legal standards too, such as the levels of nitrates in final effluent, as well as tackling problems such as sewer flooding.
"At 77p a day – about the price of a family's daily milk – we believe water bills still represent good value for money: for all the top quality water you need when you need it and to have it taken away again and cleaned to the highest standards before returning to the environment," Mr Kane concluded.
If you don't have a water meter installed, you could be paying over the odds for your bills. uSwitch.com can help you work out your usage and see if installing a water meter could help you save money. Read our water saving tips too.
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