Committee publication · Correspondence · 6 March 2026
Correspondence from Yorkshire Water regarding debt collection practices, dated 5 January 2026
From: Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Committee
Inquiry: Reforming the water sector
Summary
Yorkshire Water responds to the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Committee's November 2025 inquiry into debt collection practices and vulnerability assessment. The company outlines its risk-based debt management approach, vulnerability support measures valued at £375m over AMP8, and enforcement activity data. It reports 6,124 bailiff visits in FY24/25 and raises concerns about new Guaranteed Standards Scheme legislation potentially undermining credit-sharing arrangements used to identify vulnerable customers.
Key findings
- Yorkshire Water processes 3.66 million customer records annually through an affordability scorecard to identify over 300,000 financially vulnerable customers, combining Credit Reference Agency data with internal customer information.
- The company provides £375m in bill support over AMP8 (AMP8 vs £115m in AMP7), targeting 535,000 customers, with a three-band social tariff aiming for bills under 5% of household income by 2030.
- Bailiff visits increased from 405 cases (FY15/16) to 6,124 (FY24/25); 45% of current cases involve debts under £1,000.
- Yorkshire Water has never sought Suspended Committal Orders (SCOs) against customers; 10 complaints were made to Consumer Council for Water in FY24/25, none upheld.
- The company warns that new Guaranteed Standards Scheme legislation (October 2025) could force cessation of credit-rating data sharing, undermining its ability to identify financially vulnerable customers.
Tone
ProceduralTopics
Key actors
Alistair Carmichael MP, Nicola Shaw CBE, Yorkshire Water, Consumer Council for Water, Credit Reference Agencies, Ofwat
Notable line
“We take enforcement action as a last resort, and limit this to those who we believe have the ability to pay but chose not to.”
Key Quotes
“We take enforcement action as a last resort, and limit this to those who we believe have the ability to pay but chose not to.”
“… these obligations are not practical due to the timely reporting requirements of credit rating agency data sharing and could ultimately lead to water companies ceasing data sharing.”
“By 2030, we aim to increase the reach of our social tariff programme and wider help from 26% to 70% of eligible customers.”
“Early arrears are managed proactively through a combination of reminders and text messages; around a quarter of arrears are resolved without the need for further action.”
“This reflects our decision to balance increased support for those who can't pay, with a more robust approach to debt management for those that we assess are in a position pay.”
Source · parliament.uk record ↗