Most businesses in England and Scotland can choose their water retailer, the company that handles bills, meter readings and customer service. Your new retailer arranges the switch, while your water, the pipes and your regional water company all stay the same. If your water company's area is wholly or mainly in Wales, only sites using at least 50 million litres of water a year can switch, and only for water.
Who can switch?
Who can switch business water supplier
| Where your business is | Can you switch? |
|---|---|
| England | Yes. Businesses, charities and public bodies have been able to choose their retailer since 1 April 2017. |
| Scotland | Yes. Businesses and public bodies have been able to choose since 1 April 2008. |
| Wales | Only if a site uses at least 50 million litres of water a year, and only for water. The rule applies where your water company's area is wholly or mainly in Wales. |
Whether your business can switch comes down to a few things:
- Your water company, not just your address. If your regional water company's area is wholly or mainly in Wales, the Welsh rule applies.
- How the premises are used. Premises used mainly for business can switch, but homes can't.
- Who pays the bill. If you pay for water through your landlord, only the landlord can switch.
What changes when you switch, and what doesn't
Business water is split into two parts:
- Your regional water company supplies the water, takes away the wastewater and looks after the pipes. That stays the same whichever retailer you choose, and in Scotland it's Scottish Water everywhere.
- Your retailer handles your bills, meter readings and customer service. This is the part you can choose.
That's why a switch doesn't interrupt your supply or change your water: the only thing that changes is the company that bills you. In England, you can choose a retailer for your water, your wastewater, or both.
How long a switch takes
Your new retailer arranges the switch and gets in touch with your current one. In England, Open Water (the market's official information site) says a switch takes between 6 and 20 working days once your new retailer applies. In Scotland, switches go through the Central Market Agency, and your new retailer deals with that for you.
Your old retailer will then send a final bill for anything still owed.
What you'll need
You'll find most of this on your latest water bill:
- how much water you use in a year, and what you pay;
- your supply point ID (SPID) for each supply, which is on your bill. You may have one for water and another for wastewater;
- how you pay now.
If you've never switched
Many businesses are still on their retailer's standard terms. In England, a retailer must tell customers on a default tariff about contracts that may suit them better, and you can ask yours to improve its terms before you move. Switching water works much like switching energy, with your new company doing most of the work.
What to check before you agree
- The full cost: charges for water and wastewater, including any fixed charges, for each of your sites.
- The length and end date: when the contract ends, and what happens then.
- Exit terms: the notice you'll need to give, and any fee for leaving early. It's worth checking your current contract for these too.
- Meter readings: how often your meters will be read, because bills based on estimates can drift a long way from what you actually use.
- All your sites: whether one retailer can cover every site, so you get a single bill.
- Cooling-off: in England, a microbusiness (for water, one with fewer than 10 employees) gets a seven-day cooling-off period after agreeing a new contract with a water retailer, and can cancel at no cost during it.
Check your bill while you're at it
A switch is a good time to look at what you're actually paying for. Some sites don't drain rainwater into the public sewer, for example because it goes into a soakaway. If yours doesn't, you may be paying a surface water drainage charge you don't need to.
Our guide to business water rates covers VAT, Scotland's charges and costs in more detail.
How to switch, step by step
- Find your latest bill. Note down your yearly use, what you pay and your SPID.
- Check your current contract for its end date, the notice it needs and any exit fee.
- Get quotes from licensed retailers, either directly or through a broker. Open Water lists the retailers for England, and the Water Industry Commission for Scotland, which licenses retailers there, lists many of them on its retailer hub.
- Compare the full cost and the terms, not just the headline price.
- Agree a deal. Your new retailer then arranges the switch.
- Check your final bill from your old retailer.
If something goes wrong
Complain to your retailer first, in writing. If you're still not happy after that, contact the Consumer Council for Water (CCW) in England and Wales, or the Scottish Public Services Ombudsman (SPSO) in Scotland.
Never compared your water charges? Our free check compares your business water charges with today's market. A specialist will then ring to talk you through it, with no obligation.
Questions about switching business water supplier
Can my business switch water supplier?
Most businesses in England and Scotland can choose their water retailer. If your water company's area is wholly or mainly in Wales, though, only sites using at least 50 million litres of water a year can switch, and only for water.
How long does it take to switch business water supplier?
In England, Open Water says a switch takes between 6 and 20 working days once your new retailer applies, and the new retailer arranges it for you.
Will switching affect my water supply?
No. Your regional water company still supplies the water and takes away the wastewater through the same pipes, and only the company that bills you changes.
Does it cost anything to switch?
Open Water says switching itself is free, but check your current contract for any exit fee.
Can I switch if I pay for water through my landlord?
Not yourself, because only the bill payer can choose a retailer. You'd need to ask your landlord.
Who do I complain to about my water retailer?
Start with your retailer, in writing. If you're still unhappy, go to the Consumer Council for Water in England and Wales, or the Scottish Public Services Ombudsman in Scotland.
Sources
- CCW, water retailers: who can choose a retailer in England, water and/or wastewater, the 50 million litre rule in Wales, and landlord-supplied customers.
- CCW, five things you need to know about the new water market (March 2017): the English market opening on 1 April 2017.
- Ofwat, eligibility in the business retail market: water companies whose area is wholly or mainly in Wales, and a minimum of 50 megalitres a year.
- Open Water, FAQs: the new retailer arranges the switch, 6 to 20 business days, SPIDs, no cost to switch, the microbusiness cooling-off period, and complaints to CCW.
- Ofwat, Customer Protection Code of Practice, section 6.2: a seven calendar day cooling-off period for microbusinesses (fewer than 10 employees).
- Open Water, how to make the switch: retailers' duty to tell default-tariff customers about better contracts, and asking your current retailer to improve its terms.
- Water Industry Commission for Scotland, Scotland's retail market: choice for all non-household and public sector customers since 1 April 2008, licensing of retailers, and complaints to the SPSO.
- Water Industry Commission for Scotland, retailer hub: retailers taking part in Scotland on Tap.
- Central Market Agency, Scotland's water retail market: administers the retail market for water and wastewater services in Scotland, and publishes its rules for registration transfers (CSD0102).
- mygov.scot, water and sewerage charges for businesses: businesses choosing a licensed provider; Scottish Water running the public system.