Watchdog hails water firm for low complaints

A water company serving customers in Bath and Somerset has been rated an industry top performer for its low rate of complaints.

Bristol Water’s household written complaints were 34 per cent lower on the previous year, according to watchdog the Consumer Council for Water (CCW) Household Complaints Report.

Meanwhile escalated complaints and those sent directly to CCW, which represents the interest of water customers, were more than 45 per cent lower.

Jenny Suggate, senior policy manager at CCW, said: “Bristol Water has performed strongly not just in reducing complaints but also the way it has responded to customers’ concerns, which is why it is one of just four companies we’ve singled out for praise in our report. We hope the company will continue to strive to reduce complaints even further.”

Richard Price, chief operational officer at Bristol Water, said: “While we’re incredibly pleased to be acknowledged as an industry top performer, we know that any type of complaint is an inconvenience to our customers, and so we will always strive to lower it year on year.

“We’ve ambitious plans to achieve this and are working hard behind the scenes, one of which is creating a new system to bring the operational teams and customer teams closer together.”