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The number of households who report never having struggled with bills has fallen to just one on four.
It represents a steep rise in the number of people struggling to pay their bills, with 75% now saying they have struggled, up from 45% two years ago.
The number of consumers finding water bills unaffordable has risen from 15% in 2022, to 23% this year according to tracking surveys published by Ofwat.
Affordability challenges varied significantly between socio-demographic groups and geographic areas.
Three quarters (74%) of black respondents and 63% of Asian participants said they had had trouble paying bills.
Those with long term illnesses, health problems or a disability were disproportionately more likely (70%) to face affordability difficulties.
More women (68%) reported difficulties paying bills than men (46%) and younger people aged 18-35 struggled more (78%) than over 55s (36%).
Claire Forbes, senior director of communications at Ofwat, said the findings highlighted the number of homes unable to afford their bills but who are not getting help. “The research finds the majority of people struggling with household bills all of the time are not receiving financial support for water,” Forbes said.
The number of households getting help for water is low compared to other utilities, although bills remain significantly below other outgoings. Just 7% of consumers received help for water bills compared to 11% for electricity, 10% for gas and 8% for council tax.
The findings mirror CCW’s most recent Water Matters study that indicated more than half of households in England and Wales felt their finances had got worse over the past year.
Andy White, senior leader for social policy at CCW, called Ofwat’s report “deeply concerning”.
He said: “Existing support is of little help to those struggling to pay their bills if they don’t even know it exists and that’s why water companies must strive to raise awareness of financial assistance.”
“We also need the sector to commit to a comprehensive baseline of financial support for households that cannot afford their water bill. The current support provided through the postcode lottery of existing social tariff schemes is unsustainable and risks seeing thousands more people slip into water poverty.”
As part of our Action on Bills campaign, Utility Week is calling on the government to clarify its position on social tariffs within the water sector sooner rather than later. A single social tariff could end the postcode lottery without constraining much needed investment.
The water regulator first undertook national surveys in December 2021 to map financial troubles as the cost of living crisis took hold.
These have shown increasingly worse situations for household finances and persistently low awareness of support available from water providers, despite companies ramping up available assistance.
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