30/04/08
Water UK has responded to Ofwat’s consultation on future strategy for customer service charges and supports the principles it is proposing.
The industry believes that the value of the strategy will depend on its ability to adapt to different, but equally valid, company approaches, which themselves reflect diverse customer and corporate needs.
In particular, Water UK:
• is pleased that Ofwat emphasises its duty to customers and consumers
• agrees that prices should be as low as consistent with companies’ ability to fund their activities; concerns about affordability should not constrain overall expenditure where policy requires investment
• would like to see more detail on measures to ensure that companies recover payment from customers who can pay but choose not to; and
• supports Ofwat’s objectives in developing customers’ understanding of the value of water and agrees that improving the extent to which tariffs reflect costs will contribute to sustainable charging for water.
Contact: Jeanne Golay
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