Customer engagement

We consider that engagement between customers and their water companies is crucial to achieving a fair outcome to the price-setting process.

Throughout the price setting process, we expect the companies to take responsibility for engaging more with their customers. We will provide high-level guidance, but we will expect companies to and take their views into account when they develop their business plans. Customer acceptability is a key factor in our decisions.

The range of issues that make up the companies’ business plans are varied. The views of customers can shape some of these more directly than others. We are using a three-tiered approach to enable customers to engage in different ways, and to influence the wide range of decisions.

• Direct engagement with their water company on issues including local services and tariffs;
• Challenging the shape of their company’s overall business plan through customer challenge groups (CCGs).
• Influencing and informing our decisions through our sector wide customer advisory panel.

The publications below give more information about how we are increasing significantly the say that customers have over the prices and services they receive at our 2014 price review.

Further information