Millions of households across England will face higher water bills after the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) approved further price rises for five major suppliers.
The CMA on Thursday said an independent expert panel had provisionally allowed Anglian, Northumbrian, Southern, Wessex, and South East Water to collectively charge customers an extra £556 million over five years, only 21% of the £2.7 billion the firms had requested.
The decision means average household bills will rise by about 3%, on top of the 24% increase previously approved by industry regulator Ofwat.
The five firms, which serve 14.7 million people, had appealed to the CMA in February, claiming they needed additional funds to meet environmental standards.
However, the panel said most of their requests were largely unjustified.
Under the ruling, Anglian Water’s average bill will rise to £599 instead of the £649 it sought, while Southern Water will increase to £638, below its £710 request.
Wessex Water was granted the biggest proportional rise at 5%, taking its average bill to £622.
Water Minister Emma Hardy said she understood public frustration but insisted investments must focus on infrastructure upgrades, not bonuses.
“We’re creating a tougher new regulator to clean up our waterways and restore trust,” she said.
Consumer and environmental groups condemned the increases, warning they would worsen the cost-of-living burden while pollution problems persist.
“Bill payers are being forced to shoulder the cost of failure,” said James Wallace of River Action.
The ruling comes as Thames Water, the UK’s largest supplier, continues talks with Ofwat over a restructuring plan amid fears of potential government intervention.
