Not a single water company was able to provide evidence that they had issued fines for breaches of hosepipe bans affecting millions of customers over the past decade, The i Paper can reveal.
As the UK is engulfed by record-breaking heat and droughts – water companies are increasingly resorting to bans on non-essential water use to manage scarce supplies, threatening fines of up to £1,000 for rule-breakers.
More than 20 million people were banned from using hosepipes for watering their gardens, cars or washing windows this summer, the UK’s hottest ever.
But despite hosepipe bans often causing neighbourly tensions to rise, those breaking the rules appear to have avoided any sanctions.
Of the six water companies that had hosepipe bans between 2015 and last year, The i Paper can reveal four did not issue a single fine for rule-breakers.
The other two companies refused to say whether they had levied penalties – meaning none of the six was able to disclose issuing a single fine.
Cath Jones, head of household relationship management at the Consumer Council for Water (CCW), said fines “should always be a last resort”.
But she added: “We know hosepipe restrictions can be inconvenient and will frustrate some customers, but water companies have a responsibility to act when sustained hot weather and high demand place an unsustainable strain on water supplies.
“Research shows the vast majority of people agree hosepipe restrictions are a fair and effective step to protect supplies and most people are keen to play their part in saving water, but they also expect water companies to lead the way by tackling leakage on their own networks.”
Analysis by The i Paper found that water companies are currently losing about 2.6 billion litres of water daily through leaks before it reaches customers’ taps – far more than hosepipe bans actually save.
The water companies not enforcing hosepipe bans
Thames Water’s hosepipe ban last year affected 1.5 million customers across parts of Swindon, Gloucestershire, Oxfordshire, Berkshire and Wiltshire. A ban in 2022 across the Thames Valley and London affected over 10 million customers.
A spokesperson for the firm – facing being put into special administration over its £18.5 billion debt – said it would always use enforcement powers “proportionately”.
On this year’s hosepipe ban, they added: “We are really grateful to our customers as household demand has fallen by more than 6 per cent across the Thames Valley and the Home Counties and 3 per cent across London since the temporary use ban was introduced.”
Welsh Water implemented hosepipe bans for 60,000 households served by Llys y Fran reservoir in Pembrokeshire in 2022.
Asked about why it has issued no fines, a spokesperson said, “Our focus is on clear communication and public support.”
“Our approach is to help customers understand why these temporary restrictions are needed and encourage everyone to play their part,” they added.
They did not expect any prosecutions this year, either.
Woodhead reservoir amid drought conditions near Manchester earlier this month. More than half of England has been officially declared in drought (Photo: Jon Super/AP)Yorkshire Water, which also did not issue a fine, implemented a hosepipe ban last summer as England faced the driest and warmest spring in 132 years. The ban, which lasted from July to December 2025, affected nearly 5.5 million customers, according to Environment Agency (EA) estimates.
The company also introduced a ban in 2022.
Meanwhile, Southern Water introduced a hosepipe ban from July to October last year, affecting over 900,000 customers. The company also implemented a ban across Hampshire and the Isle of Wight in 2022.
Two water firms refuse to say whether fines levied
South East Water and South West Water both refused to say whether they had issued fines.
South East Water said releasing the information would “negatively impact the effectiveness of our current enforcement processes”.
“The core objective of this policy is to ensure adherence to the TUB [temporary use ban] through fair, transparent, and consistent application. We consider prosecution proceedings a measure of last resort, undertaken only after thorough review of all circumstances,” they added.
“We have very high compliance rates within our supply area and our enforcement policy is effective in addressing infringements.”
Meanwhile, South West Water claimed it is not obliged to release the data under Environmental Information Regulations. They said it does not relate to the environment, but rather concerns the company’s enforcement policies.
Hosepipe bans are legally enforceable under the Flood and Water Management Act 2010. Those found breaching the rules can be prosecuted through the criminal courts, alongside the fine.
Elderly people ‘fear being grassed up by neighbours’
Nicci Russell, chief executive of Waterwise, an organisation campaigning to cut water consumption, said it was “right that the water companies uphold hosepipe bans” – which can sometimes just mean “reminding” customers of the rules.
She said more evidence is needed on whether enforcing fines is effective or might have “unintended behavioural consequences”, such as leading to more people defying the ban.
Tim Parry, a gardener on the Isle of Wight, which is supplied by Southern Water, said he often gets calls from “distressed” older clients in their seventies and eighties worried about fines if they use their hosepipe.
Elderly people and those with disabilities can register with their supplier for an exemption from a hosepipe ban. But many “fear being grassed up by a neighbour”, said Parry.
“It’s heartbreaking, because their gardens are very important to them. The silent peer pressure from neighbours stops them.”
‘Shameful’ water firms accused of putting onus on households
The findings have reignited criticism over water firms amid growing calls for Government to bring them back into public control.
Reform UK’s deputy leader Richard Tice said the figures showed hosepipe bans are “a farce”. Tice added: “Households shouldn’t be threatened with fines while the water companies who’ve let billions of litres leak out of crumbling pipes face no penalty at all.”
Tim Farron, the Liberal Democrats’ environment spokesperson, said it was “shameful that water companies attempt to put the onus on households via widespread hosepipe bans”.
“Billpayers are being blamed for drought and forced to watch what they use, while the water executives who failed to invest in fit-for-purpose infrastructure face no such scrutiny.”
James Wallace, chief executive of River Action, added: “Victimising gardeners while water companies waste three billion litres of drinking water a day through leaks is laughable. Water companies and industry are the main cause of water wastage, not domestic consumers.”
A spokesperson for Thames Valley said since the beginning of April, the company had “found and fixed 30 per cent more leaks than over the same period last year”.
It is investing £3.3bn between 2025 and 2030 to “help reduce leakage and improve long-term resilience”.
But Wallace called on ministers to “urgently deliver a funded national water plan”.
This should include a “review of abstraction licences ensuring water is used where it is needed most – homes, horticulture, hospitals – and ensure water companies fix leaks and increase water storage to secure abundant clean water and protect our rivers”.
Farron said the Government and water industry regulator Ofwat must “stop making excuses for a broken industry”.
“Replace the regulator now, and end bonuses for water bosses who have failed the public,” he added.
The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs said enforcement is a matter for water companies, but they should follow their drought plans.
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