Southern Water Omdömen 

They took the normal direct debit during June, they then failed to take that direct debit in July sending me letters and I had to make a manual payment, the direct debit was still in place and has randomly this month updated to my previous direct debit on my old card and started charging that with no warning. Between constantly overcharging me and refusing to return credit and this If there was a single other water company I'd go for them.

We are very disappointed with Southern water. It is a rip off water supply company. Ever since new meters were installed. We have received a monthly bill of £111.00 for a family of 4, 2 adults and 2 children, which does not add up at all. Because we are hardly at home. We use to get a bill £35 to £40 with old meter. But now a massive increase, which is in unacceptable. When we spoke to the neighbours, they are facing the same problem. We reported the issue. They asked us to see if any leaks and sent an engineer to check but he checked everything and said there are no leaks. So I think it is billing problem.

If I could give no stars I would and I will start by saying there should be other companies you can buy your water from other than just southern water cos of the area you live in , they have taken money from my bank account for the last 2 months unauthorised and the again just today bare in mind I only paid 12 days ago when I called the lady said I’m sorry this has been a system error and to call my bank and get the money back this is fraud I can’t believe you treat your disabled customers like this plus I asked for your confession in a email because of your taking money from my account when you want it makes me in a minus and my car insurance isn’t being paid to Sterling so the think I keep defaulting when it’s not me but southern water taking money from people when the are not authorised I’m sick of this and all you can say is I’m sorry WTF I will be taking this higher I dnt care how much hassle it’s costing me I wnt let this go what’s the point being on a priority register???

What an absolute shower . I have been paying an obseen amount of money for water that is just running into the ground not even on my boundery . I have had an engineer out he said I don't need to put a probe in the ground as I can hear it 🤷 southern water can back and said after extensive examination they are confident it's not there main . My son in-laws best man used to work for them then went out on his own he got a friend of his that works for southern water to come round and said the leak was below the meter this is after there so-called extensive examination . He raised a job for it said they would be around the next day . 10 days later they turned up repaired the leak . Then the guy said had I got any appliances running I said no he said there is another leak on the drive and said I will locate it and let you know . 15 mins later looked out the window and they had all gone so rang south Easter on the Monday they said they had been informed about another leak and I had to get it fixed is said when where you going to tell me that . I must have rung them at least 10 times now and not once have they kept me informed they just keep taking my money !!!!!!!!!! Absolut shower

Disputed final bill after mum died and house was sold. The house had been empty for six months but there was still usage showing. Nobody had been in the house. I disputed the usage but all they kept saying was that they had a photo of the meter? I was questioning a fault with the meter or a leak but they weren't interested all they kept quoting was that they had a photo of the meter. Impossible to deal with and rubbish customer service. It is even possible if there was a leak that mum was overpaying and that Southern Water were overcharging a 90 year old with terminal cancer. Disgraceful customer service and company ethics. Reply from Southern Water noted. I will update if/when they respond to my complaint. Update, Southern Water have now responded to my Trustpilot review twice in a week telling me that they have shared the details with their team. Nothing from their team though. 24th August. Still no response from Customer Services. Update. Email from Customer Services 28/08/26 stating that they are happy with the meter reading and yet again stating that they have a photograph of the meter and asking me if I want them to investigate a meter fault or leak (which is what I asked them to do when I questioned the bill). I have replied that I would like them to investigate. Not sure why they don't call me rather than emailing. Couldn't make it up. Further update. From the email that Southern Water has sent me on 28/08/26 detailing the water usage over the last four years it shows that mum has used more water in the six months since she passed away than she did in the corresponding six months in the three years previous to her passing. Letter dated 02/09/26 stating that the water bill hasn't been paid and to make payment to avoid further action being taken. This bill is in dispute with there complaints team awaiting the outcome of checks for a faulty meter or leaks. It seems that they don't communicate with other departments within their own company very well either.
A further email from Southern Water on 22/09/26 stating that following review they have adjusted the amount of water consumed and that we no longer owe them anything and they hope that this resolves the matter. No explanation why or how they have adjusted, no apology for the effort and grief that they have caused. I think they are hoping I will go away now that they have said I don't owe them anything. Update, further contact with Southern Water explaining their adjustments and that mum actually used less water than average consumer and as a result they have adjusted the bills to reflect her average usage and that we owe them nothing and that they are going to credit the account circa £100, so after arguing for three months they have now said we are in credit and the account is closed.

Appalling. In 2023 my water bill was £16.90, rising to £45 in 2024 and as of last month it is £81.10 for 1 person. They claim I increased my water use by 30% last year 300% this year. I have paid out £350 in plumbers who have called and confirmed the issue is with the meter which shows a leak even when the the stop tap is off, meaning southern water are charging me to pour 200 litres of water a day into the street while I watch my garden shrivel and die. I have called 3 times and told them I cannot afford to pay this, particularly as nothing I can do to reduce the water lost and mitigate future bills as it is not even reaching my house. Operatives have given me different timescales as to if/when an engineer will come out ranging from 48 hours to 3 months, which I cannot wait for. Unless the water is shooting into the sky or pouring into the street they will come no sooner despite the fault being theirs. My combined energy bills are now a third of my water bill and I feel completely powerless to do anything. It honestly feels like I am being robbed every month and I cannot believe that this is allowed to happen.

Just watched a lazy Southern water nan get out his van open rear door then go sit back in his seat for over 2 hours donf f a

I'm trying to report a massive leak, which has been going for 2 days. Can't get hold of a human or actually leave a report on their system.... Only a drought going on....

While on the live chat today rohini was exceptionally helpful , reset my account , no problem at all

Thousands of litres of water still pouring out of leak outside Sainsburys' in central Winchester - been going on for weeks despite public protest, articles in Hampshire Chronicle. Can Southern Water bosses be removed? we are all doing our best to save water, Southern Water couldn't care less. Our bills have tripled, their salaries and bonuses continue to rise. What a total shambles! Get rid of them all, Burnham government, please!

Our sewer was blocked we phoned Southern water, although it took a while to speak to someone , from then it was excellent. The team arrived at the time of the text message and did a fantastic job. Dave and Leon were brilliant. Thank you

The Water the water don't quite taste like what outta No the Water in Southern Robbing yer bank with out telling you, then over 1 month laters via several phone calls i have gotten to know the entire staff team. and still no 100 quid recompense or a bloody call back for the 4th time now... if i could switch to outter mongolia i would

Trying to pay my water bill. Was issued with a new smart meter so I cancelled my extortionate direct debit and will pay for what I use..however it's impossible to submit a meter reading because the website won't accept it. My last bill was 150, for the half a year yet I'm paying nearly three times the amount by direct debit. No explanation, can't call, in a queue for ages.

Staff are overpaid and lie. After they knew I was unable to read the meter they didn't take a reading. A year went by, and I was told they were supposed to take it every 6 months and that "the meter was not talking to their computer but it was fixed now". Another year went by and I was told the same thing. 3 years no meter readings. Overcharged by 120 units and, after asking for the revised bills, they have mashed up my water usage to fit the higher unit rate charged from my account, with absolutely no bearing on my usage. According to them I use 3 times more since they increased their rates, 280litres a day up from 40litres, which is impossible. The customer service person apologised for their "incontinence". Because Southern Water fed incorrect data to Bournemouth water, I've also been overcharged waste water. They charged me £238.68 knowing they had not read the meter. This is going to the Ombudsman.

They sent me a bill. Nothing out of the ordinary except less than 7 days later another email! Pay your bill in 7 days! Do they not realise people are living in a cost of living crisis & are living hand to mouth waiting for each pay day to make ends meet sometimes made even more stressful by having a life ending illnesses!!!. Ive never Not paid & always clear my bill within 30 days. I feel Harassed seeing as there are customers out there that don't pay & wont pay yet they get left alone!.

They sent me an outrageous bill of £1,400 and then one of them called to threaten me very rudely about paying it as they will not be sending an engineer to generate a new reading. I am ready to challenge them this time with the Ombudsman. This has got to stop.

Now waiting for nearly two weeks for my complaint to dealt with.
I have sat on WhatsApp for many hours and received many scripted faux apologies. They know that I am in my seventies, am certified as deaf and have severely limited visual capacity.
Southern Water are a national embarrassment.
Lawrence Gosden has failed as CEO and should be replaced by the company's investment bank owners, Greensands Holdings Limited.
If customers had a choice of supplier they would undoubtedly change - but this is a monopoly and they act like a monopoly.
Shameful.
And still no reply!

I had two simple questions for the Customer Services operative and she failed to answer both.

First, I wished to know the year and date in which Southern Water had sent out a team to effect a repair to my water meter/the stopcock under the pavement outside my house. It was at least five years ago, and the only repair they have ever needed to do since I had the meter installed.

I have no email record of this. Presumably confirmation of appointment was done by SMS messages which are not kept by the phone beyond a certain period, hence my request to her.

I was alerted to the need for the repair by my own plumber at the time, as I explained to the operative. He had used a technical term to describe the fault.

I also wanted to know the technical name of the fault with the meter/stopcock which they had repaired and which my plumber had alerted me to.

The operative claimed they have no such record of any repair, and that if any repair had been carried out, they would have a record of it!

I asked her if she was implying I was lying about the repair!

I gave further details of the pavement being closed off for the area, and mentioned the name of Clancy (one of their sub-contractors) being on the yellow pavement signs temporarily put up while the work was done.

She later claimed her findings were confirmed by the "Technical Team" for which she had put me on hold for ten minutes. She insisted that no repairs had been done to the meter/stopcock at my property!

From this, I can conclude several possibilities:

1. Southern Water is inefficient, inept and not good at keeping a history of repairs at domestic properties.

2. Staff are not trained properly and are incapable of finding requested details i.e. the date of the repair and the name of the fault.

3. Staff are deliberately trained to obfuscate and put off the customer with what – to me – was obvious nonsense. This is presumably to evade liability and responsibility regarding works done, guarantees or future works.

4. Staff are not trained in other ways. Near the end of the 20 minute call, she asked me "When did the repair take place?" I replied: "That was my question to you at the start of this conversation!"

I left the operative in no doubt that I was not impressed with her ineffective and disrespectful "support".

Southern Water: a national disgrace in everything from customer support to water quality.

Just lamentable.

Totally useless company. I have had an issue with direct debit payments. They collect the payment early and the direct debit guarantee dos not seem to apply to them. Frequent calls to their customer services does not resolve the problem. They have a narrative they seem to follow but does not resolve the issue.

Another year, another drought.
The Southern Water Cycle
Spring rains -> let overflow, runoff and waste get dumped into the river because the system cant handle it.
Summer Droughts -> react slowly to water leaks, enforce? A hose pipe ban, and drain an already delicate chalk stream.

Oh yeah and my water bill keeps going up.. despite not having a house pipe, re-using my waste water and using rain barrels...