Companies’ records Waste, bills and bonuses

Which water companies are putting up bills while pumping out sewage – and paying out large bonuses? Here breaks down the numbers:

UNITED UTILITIES

According to the Environment Agency, United Utilities performed the worst out of any water company last year in terms of pollution,with 45.4 spills per overflow and more than 650,000 hours of monitored spill events in 2023.

Last year the chief executive, Steve Mogford, received a £426,000 bonus as part of a £2.2m pay packet. The bonus was down from £727,000 the previous year.

Bills will increase by 7.8 per cent between 2023-24 and 2024-25, from £446 to £481 next year.

BILLS: UP 7.8% BONUS: DOWN 41.4%

SOUTH WEST WATER

South West Water had 43.4 spills per overflow and 317,285 total hours of sewage spills.

The company’s chief executive, Susan Davy, opted not to take a £450,000 bonus last year amid criticism of pollution levels. Bills are set to drop slightly next year, from £486 to £484.

BILLS: DOWN 0.4%

BONUS: DOWN 100%

YORKSHIRE WATER

Yorkshire Water has the third highest level of spills, with 35.9 spills per overflow and 516,386 hours in total. The chief executive, Nicola Shaw, opted to forgo her bonus last year. Bills are set to rise from £440 to £467.

BILLS: UP 6.13%

BONUS: DOWN 100%

WELSH WATER

Wales’s national water supplier has the fourth-highest level of spills in England, according to the Environment Agency data, with 35 spills per overflow in 2023. However, it only spilled for 23,354 hours – the lowest among all the water firms.

Welsh Water’s chief executive opted to refuse a bonus last year. Bills are set to drop from £512 to £492.

BILLS DOWN 3.9%

BONUS: DOWN 100%

WESSEX WATER

Wessex Water, which is the UK’s smallest water company by revenue, had 32 spills per overflow in 2023. The company charges households the most for bills, with an average household paying £548 in 2024-25 – up from £489.

The company paid out £459,000 in bonuses to executives last year, including £120,000 to the chief executive Colin Skellett.

BILLS UP 12%

BONUS: DOWN 29%

SOUTHERN WATER

Southern Water, owned by the

Australian conglomerate Macquarie, had average spills of 30.7 per overflow in 2023.

The company has awarded executives £4.6m in pay and bonuses since 2020, but both the chief executive and chief financial officer declined bonuses last July.

Water bills with Southern are set to increase from £428 for an average household to £479 in 2024-25. BILLS: UP 11.9%

BONUS: DOWN 100%

NORTHUMBRIAN WATER

Northumbrian Water recorded 30.1 spills per overflow over the course of 2023.

The company is set to charge consumers the least in 2024-25, with the average household bill set to be £422, up from £387.

The chief executive, Heidi Mottram, received a bonus of £215,000 in 2023, up from £130,000 in the previous year.

BILLS: UP 9%

BONUS: UP 65%

SEVERN TRENT

Severn Trent performed second best of the water companies for average spills, averaging only 24.9 spills per outflow.

Severn Trent’s Liv Garfield’s bonus shrank last year, but overall pay grew to a total of £3.2m. Meanwhile, bills with Severn Trent are expected to increase from £411 to £438.

BILLS: UP 6.5%

BONUS: DOWN 51.3%

THAMES WATER

Thames Water, the embattled major player of the UK’s water industry, had 27.9 spills per overflow, in what was a terrible year for the company financially.

The company teetered on the edge of collapse, with negotiations with Ofgem still ongoing.

Thames Water’s former chief executive, Sarah Bentley, opted to refuse her bonus last year, as the company was roundly criticised for sewage pollution levels.

Bills with the company are set to increase from £456 to £471 per year. BILLS: UP 3.2%

BONUS: DOWN 100%

ANGLIAN WATER

Anglian Water performed best out of any water company, averaging 22.2 spills per overflow. The company also charges customers the second highest bills for any firm, with the average household paying £529 for 2024-25, up from £489.

The company had previously awarded executives a “special bonus” in 2022, which made up for deductions from their standard bonus due to missing performance targets over pollution.

BILLS: UP 8.1%

BONUS: DOWN 0.88%