United Utilities

Water company. Products & services: Water & sewerage.

Updated: 3 August 2026

Company Overview

Industry: Water and wastewater (water and sewerage company)
Parent company: United Utilities Group PLC (FTSE 100; company no. 06559020)
Regulator: Ofwat (economic); Environment Agency (environmental); Drinking Water Inspectorate (water quality)
Ombudsman: Consumer Council for Water (CCW) reviews complaints; the Dispute Resolution Ombudsman provides binding ADR
Customers: Around 3 million households and 200,000 business premises (~7 million people) across North West England
Founded: United Utilities Water Limited incorporated 1 April 1989
Legal entity: United Utilities Water Limited (company no. 02366678)

What customers complain about

Customers of United Utilities most often complain about bills and affordability (the largest complaint category across the water sector following steep 2025-30 price rises), water-supply and pipework issues such as leaks, low pressure and delays to repairs, and sewerage problems including internal and external flooding and the clean-up afterwards. Environmental complaints — sewage spills from storm overflows and pollution incidents — are a prominent theme for United Utilities specifically, driven by the Windermere discharge controversy and a fall in its Environment Agency rating. CCW rated United Utilities 'worse than average' on complaint handling in 2024-25, with 72.7 complaints per 10,000 connections against a water-and-sewerage-company average of 67. Complaints should go to the company first, then CCW, then binding adjudication if deadlock remains.

Complaint categories

1
Billing and affordability
Billing is the single biggest complaint category across the water sector, accounting for 66% of complaints brought to CCW in 2024-25, driven by the steep 2025-30 price rises. United Utilities customers face these increases alongside a large capital programme, making bill amounts, affordability support and metering common sources of dissatisfaction.
CCW household complaint handling report 2024-25 (billing 66% of complaints to CCW; affordability complaints up 110%).
2
Water supply and pipework
Complaints about pipework (who owns it, cost and time to fix leaks) and water supply (interruptions, low pressure, restoration delays) are the leading non-billing themes sector-wide. Delays in repairs are the biggest single pipework cause.
CCW household complaint handling report 2024-25 (pipework 60% of water complaints to CCW; delays in repairs 32% of those).
3
Sewerage, flooding and the environment
Internal and external sewer flooding, the clean-up service afterwards, and environmental pollution from storm overflows are prominent for United Utilities specifically, whose sewage discharges into Windermere and falling environmental rating have drawn sustained scrutiny.
CCW household complaint handling report 2024-25 (flooding 46% of sewerage complaints to CCW); Environment Agency Windermere investigation; EA EPA 2-star rating for 2024.

Contact methods

Complaint journey

1
Contact United Utilities
Raise the complaint with United Utilities by phone, online form or post.
Typical responseWithin 10 working days
What happens
Contact the relevant team first: 0345 075 0711 for bills and payments, or 0345 075 0713 for water and wastewater. The company aims to resolve issues on the phone; if it cannot, it will send a written reply within 10 working days at the latest. You can also complain via the online form or in writing to United Utilities, PO Box 453, Warrington, WA55 1SE.
2
Ask for an independent Stage 2 review
If you are not satisfied, ask for the complaint to be escalated internally.
Typical responseVaries
What happens
If you remain unhappy, United Utilities will escalate your complaint (Stage 2) to an agent who was not involved in the original response to carry out an independent review. Keep a note of who you speak to and any reference number.
3
Get the final response
United Utilities issues its final decision, or eight weeks pass without resolution.
Typical responseUp to 8 weeks
What happens
You need the company's final response, or to have waited more than eight weeks, before an external body will review the complaint. Ask United Utilities to confirm its position in writing.
4
Escalate to CCW
The Consumer Council for Water reviews unresolved water complaints for free.
Typical responseVaries
What happens
Contact CCW on 0300 034 2222 or via its website once you have the final response or your complaint is over eight weeks old. CCW is the independent voice for water consumers and can negotiate, mediate or refer the dispute for adjudication. It cannot handle general industry-performance issues, which are for regulators.
5
Dispute Resolution Ombudsman - binding decision
If deadlock remains, an independent adjudicator issues a decision binding on the company.
Typical responseUp to 35 working days
What happens
Where CCW cannot settle the dispute, it can be referred to the Dispute Resolution Ombudsman, the water sector's independent alternative dispute resolution provider appointed via Water UK in 2026. CCW reviews and tries to mediate complaints, but the binding decision is made by the Ombudsman, not CCW. The decision is binding on United Utilities if you accept it, and the service is free to use.

Response times

United Utilities aims to resolve complaints during the first phone call. Where it cannot, it targets a written reply within 10 working days at the latest (Stage 1). If you are dissatisfied, it will carry out an independent Stage 2 review by an agent not involved in your original complaint. You can take the matter to CCW once you have the company's final response or your complaint is over eight weeks old. Under the statutory Guaranteed Standards Scheme (GSS), water companies must pay set amounts for certain failures — for example £10 per day for an unplanned supply interruption (capped at the previous year's average household bill) — and make GSS payments within 10 working days of them becoming due; you can claim within three months if a payment is not made automatically. A binding decision from the Dispute Resolution Ombudsman is available if CCW cannot resolve the dispute.

If your complaint isn’t resolved

If United Utilities can’t put things right, you can escalate — free of charge — to an independent body:

Consumer Council for Water

Recent news

16 July 2024
Ofwat opened a formal enforcement case against United Utilities (alongside Dwr Cymru Welsh Water, Hafren Dyfrdwy and Severn Trent) over the management of wastewater treatment works, sewer networks and storm overflows — extending its investigation to all 11 water and wastewater companies.
Read more
17 October 2024
The Environment Agency confirmed a complex ongoing investigation into sewage discharges from United Utilities' Windermere network. Reporting alleged the company discharged large volumes of wastewater from the Glebe Road pumping station between 2021 and 2023 at times it was not permitted, some of it unreported to regulators.
Read more
22 July 2025
The Environment Agency's Environmental Performance Assessment rated United Utilities 2-star ('requires improvement') for 2024, down from 4-star ('industry leading') for 2023, with total pollution incidents rising to 376.
Read more
10 September 2025
CCW's 2024-25 household complaint review recorded United Utilities at 72.692 complaints per 10,000 connections and rated it 'worse than average' on complaint handling, above the water-and-sewerage-company average of 67.
Read more

Earlier cases

1 January 2024
Historic: United Utilities said it identified an engineering configuration issue on its Windermere system in January 2024 meaning some discharges from the Glebe Road pumping station between 2021 and 2023 were potentially non-compliant, which it reported to the Environment Agency. Campaigners alleged over 100 million litres went unreported.
Read more

Know your rights

Water Industry Act 1991 and the Water Supply and Sewerage Services (Customer Service Standards) Regulations 2008 (the Guaranteed Standards Scheme, GSS)
These set the statutory framework for United Utilities' service and require guaranteed-standard payments for certain failures — for example missed appointments, delayed responses, and supply interruptions (£10 per day for households, capped at the previous year's average bill). Payments should be automatic, and you can usually claim within three months if they are not. This is general information, not legal advice.
Consumer Rights Act 2015
Services must be provided with reasonable care and skill. Where United Utilities provides a service that falls short, this can support a claim for the service to be put right or for a price reduction. This is general information, not legal advice.

Frequently asked questions

Who regulates United Utilities?

Ofwat regulates United Utilities economically, the Environment Agency oversees its environmental performance (including the Windermere and storm-overflow investigations) and the Drinking Water Inspectorate oversees drinking-water quality. These regulators enforce rules but do not resolve individual complaints — CCW does that.

Can I take a United Utilities complaint to the Financial Ombudsman?

No. Water is outside the Financial Ombudsman Service and the FCA. Unresolved United Utilities complaints go to the Consumer Council for Water (CCW) and, if deadlock remains, to the Dispute Resolution Ombudsman for a binding decision.

How many complaints does United Utilities get?

In CCW's 2024-25 review United Utilities recorded 72.692 household complaints per 10,000 connections and was rated 'worse than average' on complaint handling, above the water-and-sewerage-company average of 67.

How do I contact United Utilities to complain?

Call 0345 075 0711 for bills and payments or 0345 075 0713 for water and wastewater (Mon-Thu 8am-8pm, Fri 8am-6pm, Sat 8am-4pm), use the online form, or write to United Utilities, PO Box 453, Warrington, WA55 1SE. The company aims to reply in writing within 10 working days.

Am I owed an automatic payment if my water is cut off?

Possibly. Under the Guaranteed Standards Scheme, United Utilities must pay households £10 for each day (or part day) an unplanned supply interruption continues, capped at the previous year's average household bill, and pay within 10 working days. If it is not paid automatically you can usually claim within three months.

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