South West Water Reviews 

423
TrustScore 1.5 out of 5

1.3

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Review summary

Created with AI, based on recent reviews

Looking at 113 reviews, most reviewers were let down by their experience overall. Consumers expressed deep frustration over soaring water bills and unexpected payment increases that seemed impossible to justify or comprehend. Reaching out for help proved difficult, with people reporting excessive phone wait times and unhelpful interactions with support agents. However, some people mentioned that certain staff members and field workers were exceptionally helpful and professional when resolving problems. Reviewers warmly appreciated technicians who arrived promptly to fix urgent leaks and restored water services with polite and efficient care. A few consumers also noted positive encounters with specific individuals who took the time to patiently answer billing questions.

What people talk about most

Service

Reviewers highlight negative aspects of service, describing frequent communication breakdowns, unaddressed... See more

Price

Customers consistently express deep frustration and dissatisfaction regarding pricing, highlighting... See more

Customer service

Users describe negative interactions with customer service, reporting immense frustration over long wait... See more

Staff

Consumers find staff to be ambiguous, experiencing a mix of frustration and appreciation when interacting... See more

Payment

Customers consistently note negative experiences with payment processes, describing billing as problematic... See more

Reviews shaping this summary

Rated 1 out of 5 stars

Left Devon to move to Midlands. Final bill was nearly 10 times my monthly bill. Lots of data presented but no explanation of how it relates to previous billing or why the massive jump. Then had 4... See more

Rated 1 out of 5 stars

Awaiting leaky meter replacement. Said would be about 1 month. I wished to know if I could be given a future date of installation as now been 3 weeks since engineer confirmed a new meter needed. Trie... See more

Rated 1 out of 5 stars

Appalling customer service as they keep you hanging on the phone for almost an hour before they answer! Not only that, they pour untreated, raw sewage into our bathing water - even on days when the... See more

Rated 1 out of 5 stars

Recent enquiries regarding help as per water leak allowance. Months of being passed pillar to post and talked to as if I was lucky to get any help. Yet again being transferred to a call centre in anot... See more


Company details

  1. Water Utility Company

Written by the company

South West Water provides drinking water and waste water services throughout Cornwall and Devon and in small areas of Dorset and Somerset.


Contact info

1.3

Bad

TrustScore 1.5 out of 5

423 reviews

5-star
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1-star

No recent history of asking for reviews

This company hasn't invited customers recently, so reviews may not be representative

Hasn’t replied to negative reviews

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1.3

All reviews

(423)

97 reviews in the last 12 months

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Rated 1 out of 5 stars

Second hike in my monthly payment in a…

Second hike in my monthly payment in a very short space of time an extra £20 a month what a joke .... and the way they handled my removing a name off the bill was absolutely hilarious, they refunded me a huge amount over a thousand and then charged me that £1000 2 weeks later just to shut an account down to restart another , why in gods name in 2026 would you physically shut my account down give me everything I have paid in that year back to me and then for me to give that back to them 2 weeks later makes absolutely no sense, what an experience..

May 12, 2026
Unprompted review
Rated 1 out of 5 stars

It breaks my heart to admit I currently…

It breaks my heart to admit I currently work for this company alongside many other hard working people on the ground dealing with real problems, lack of investment and aging infrastructure.
Here are the facts .
There is no money.
Don't believe the record investment bullshit you hear in the media.
Unless sewage is literally pouring into the river or sea they don't want to know.
Management are completely useless, verging on incompetent.
They have no idea what actually goes on day to day ,
There are so many staff leaving and on long term sick it's unbelievable.
Leaving huge gaps for others to cover.
You work hard to the point of putting your own health at risk and you are rewarded with someone else's work to do .
Sites are a mess because there is no money to pay for contractors to cut the grass.
You're expected to do this without the actual kit for the job as well as covering other people's work .
It's farcical.
Billing is a joke .
We recently moved house and have a septic tank and our bill has doubled.
Contacting anyone to fix this issue is almost impossible.
The whole company is a complete car crash .

May 5, 2026
Unprompted review
Rated 1 out of 5 stars

I was taken off the low water tarriff…

I was taken off the low water tarriff after only making an enquiry, was advised my water bill would rise another 50% so I immediately started to drastically use as little water as possible and save where was possible, then the bill arrived and my bill was doubled 😱😭i cannot save any more than I already have and why would my bill be double the usual amount the billing was also to complicated to read and understand I have zero confidence in S.W.W and its water meter readings and billing

April 23, 2026
Unprompted review
Rated 1 out of 5 stars

Over charging

After recent water charge increase, my actual water charges are a couple of quid, but my services charges are huge. Water needs to be protected as a national security issue.

April 12, 2026
Unprompted review
Rated 1 out of 5 stars

Where do I even begin....

Where do I even begin....
So me and my gf where both out the country last year for 4 months September to December 2025 as you do we turned off the water in the house. When we returned we found a massive water bill upon investigating we found a leak at the water meter which took them over 2 months to fix and they had just guessed are meter reading, and now they are only refunding us £70 for a leak that could have been going on for 5 months!!! The company is an absolute joke and just out to steal your money if I could give them 0 stars I would and I would also change providers if I could.

April 10, 2026
Unprompted review
Rated 1 out of 5 stars

Extorionate amounts charged for water…

Extorionate amounts charged for water and even more for sewerage. Have to run the kitchen cold tap for approximately one minute to get clear water to drink. SWW blames my pipes for this. Massive limescale build up in my toilets eventhough I thoroughly clean them. I use a lot of water due to health issues but still cannot get a reduction in water rates as I am not on a "Qualifying benefit". Water meter already installed on my property so am not allowed to go on an assessed charge. Funny how SWW management have such big bonuses...oh wait, it's due to them charging stupid amounts to their customers.

April 9, 2026
Unprompted review
Rated 2 out of 5 stars

Fictional meter readings

On several occasions I queried my bills, only to be told each time that the meter is read on a regular basis. As far as I am aware, my meter has only been read once in five and a half years, and that was when I requested an engineer to attend. I am not the only one to experience this and through Facebook, it appears to be standard practise for SWW. I believe that the Serious Fraud Office should investigate this to ascertain whether or not SWW are deliberately overcharging customers in order to earn interest on those funds. They should also look into SWW claims of regular meter readings taking place.

February 12, 2026
Unprompted review
Rated 1 out of 5 stars

I have nothing good to say about S W Water!

I have nothing good to say about this company-the hassle it takes to get any sort of query resolved is unbelievable. The prices have rocketed recently- I asked for some room to sort the new monthly bill, but all I've got is threatening letters! A jump from £31-50 to £49-50 pm is not reasonable! ( I'm on State Pension only).

March 19, 2026
Unprompted review
Rated 1 out of 5 stars

Appalling Customer Service

There has been a large increase in my direct debit without any explanation. Tried to phone only to hear a recorded message saying I was 26th in the queue. According I wrote to them using 1st class mail. After 7 days they haven’t bothered to reply. Their customer service is appalling.

March 16, 2026
Unprompted review
Rated 1 out of 5 stars

Bereavement Service is appalling

Bereavement Service is appalling. I contacted the bereavement line to advise that my mother had passed away. I gave them my contact details and asked to be updated and change the name on the account. I received a generic email to my address saying I have a new account and welcome to SWW! SWW also emailed my mum (now deceased and they were told) a closing bill and even addressed it to the executor of her estate. I called them and explained that its not best practice to send generic emails and maybe some recognition and empathy around someone passing would be a better thing to do. I was escalated to another team member who said the emails are auto generated and there is no bereavement team. With the millions this company make they should invest in a team to handle these times in peoples lives. Their intro message even says how much they value their customers and how well they treat them. Its a shocking way to deal with a bereaved person and even more so they dont have trained agents and a dedicated team. Fast forward to today and again they have emailed my mothers email address another bill.. Incompetence at its finest

March 19, 2026
Unprompted review
Rated 1 out of 5 stars

000004301664

000004301664 hi. this has not been fixed water as stated on your website the water is still pouring down the road and the road surface is cracking in front of houses. reported 8 weeks ago been out twice dug some holes in the field couldnt find leak and filled them back in !

March 18, 2026
Unprompted review
Rated 5 out of 5 stars

Excellent repairs to our water main - 10/10 workforce!

Ponsworthy is a rural hamlet on Dartmoor. A watermain burst outside out home and we were impressed to see our workers toiling in pouring rain on a windy night until 4am to get to the problem & get our water back on. What a lovely gang they were. Very professional and worked day and night literally to sort us out. They got it all finished within a few days but the water was only. off for a matter of 12 hours or less. Thank you so much and please pass on our thanks to the guys who were here this week (commencing 8th March). Excellent service.

March 13, 2026
Unprompted review
Rated 1 out of 5 stars

Phoned up about the water bill which…

Phoned up about the water bill which was over estimated,by 9 cubic metres only used 2 cubic metres, person on the phone rudely said you don't use a lot water. Before there was me and father. Now just myself only need water for washing up etc. It's of no concern to them why!! Now have account in my name and paying correct amount as to reading. On the whole my experience of South West water so far is very poor. Already can see a complaint being put in only had account two days.

March 11, 2026
Unprompted review
Rated 1 out of 5 stars

South West water horrible company

South West water are the worst company of ever had to deal with. All their interested in is paying their shareholders. Pumping sewage into our waters. Disgusting. They have literally doubled the price of sewage and water. So you pay it weekly. (Not on a payment plan) Then they send threatening letters saying they're going to take you to court. Nasty people.

March 7, 2026
Unprompted review
Rated 1 out of 5 stars

I tried to contact south west water…

I tried to contact south west water using their virtual assistant I was disconnected 3 times so 3 different assistants all asking the same information, again, and still no resolution to my query as I was then disconnected mid way through typing!!!!!!

March 6, 2026
Unprompted review
Rated 1 out of 5 stars

Terrible company

Terrible company. polluting the water. extortionate innacurate bills. persecute sick and vulnerable people. Never speak to them on phone unless you record it as they lie, get paper trails. overcharging people

January 6, 2026
Unprompted review

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