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While SWW came second to Thames Water in the number of complaints per 10,000 connections in 2025-2026, the firm had the sharpest rise, the Consumer Council for Water (CCW) said. The watchdog - an independent body which represents consumers in the industry - assesses each company's performance on the number of complaints it receives for every 10,000 households it serves and the amount of effort customers have to put in to get their complaint resolved. Both SWW and Thames Water were rated "poor" for both performance measures, making them the worst performing companies.
Catherine Jones of the CCW, said: "This is the second successive year SWW has found itself among the worst performers for complaints." Citing "significant bill rises" over the past two years, she said customers "need to see their money is being well spent and making a difference where they live - whether that's cleaner seas and rivers or getting the support they need when they are struggling to pay their bill." In 2025-26, SWW received 18,938 complaints - or 183 per 10,000 connected households. That was a rise from 7,485 the previous year. Billing issues were the main source of complaints in 2025-2026, the data shows, making up 76% of the total, followed by water with 17% and wastewater with 6%.
Source: BBC
