Water company Wessex Water has been ordered to pay £11 million following a regulatory investigation into serious failures in how it operated and maintained its sewerage system.
Regulator's Enforcement Action
The penalty was confirmed by the water regulator, Ofwat, on Tuesday 16 December 2025. The enforcement package concludes a case where the utility provider was found to have inadequately run, maintained, and upgraded its wastewater network.
The £11 million will be directed towards specific projects aimed at reducing spills from storm overflows and assisting customers in managing rainwater on their properties. Crucially, the company and its shareholders will fund the package, not customers through their bills.
Investment and Compliance Measures
This financial penalty is separate from the investment Wessex Water is already required to make under its price review. The company has stated it plans to invest £300 million in its sewerage infrastructure over the next five years.
Under the terms of the agreement, Wessex Water will undertake several key actions:
- Help private landowners seal sewer pipes to prevent unnecessary groundwater from entering the network.
- Bring forward investment in storm overflows, work that would otherwise have happened after 2030.
- Install additional monitoring equipment to better manage flows at treatment works and overflows.
Holding Companies to Account
Lynn Parker, Ofwat's senior director for enforcement, said the regulator was pleased with the case's conclusion. "This is the sixth case completed in our wider wastewater investigation, which during 2025 has resulted in Ofwat securing £250 million in fines and enforcement packages," she stated.
"These cases are a crucial part of holding water companies to account and driving the transformation of the water sector that the public wants to see," Parker added.
Wessex Water, which serves areas of Dorset, Somerset, Bristol, most of Wiltshire, and parts of Gloucestershire and Hampshire, responded to the ruling. The company said it "regrets the impact our wastewater performance has had on customers and the environment" and pledged to "tackle the problem directly."
The final enforcement package followed proposals made by Ofwat last month and a subsequent 21-day consultation period where customers and stakeholders could provide feedback.
