Bristol Water tops first R-Mex survey

Bristol Water has been named the best performing water wholesaler in the inaugural R-Mex league by market operator MOSL.

R-Mex (retailer measure of experience) scores were introduced last year as a consistent comparison system for suppliers to rate wholesalers’ performance.

Portsmouth and Wessex were jointly in second place with an overall service score of 8.0, with Affinity and South East making up the top five with 7.8 each.

Thames ranked lowest with an overall service score of 6.1, below the market average of 7.4. South Staffs and Severn Trent also sat at the lower end of the table with scores of 6.3 each.

Information from surveys sent to retailers in October also rated wholesalers on overall service, speed and quality of responses to service requests, level of communication, quality of data and effectiveness of financial policies.

Highest average scores were given for level of engagement and support from wholesalers (7.6) with Bristol and Portsmouth performing well in this category. MOSL said the comments in the surveys showed most retailers felt supported by their wholesalers, however, suggested they needed more regular meetings, increased automation with systems and consistent points of contact.

Scores for effectiveness of systems and notifications were the lowest on average (6.9) with United Utilities and South Staffs earning 5.4 and 5.5 respectively, compared to a high of 8.2 for Bristol.

A report in August identified data quality, cumbersome wholesaler-retailer interactions and standardising wholesaler tariff structures as key areas to improve bilateral relations. Ofwat called on incumbent companies to do more to support the efficacy of the business retail market.

MOSL received responses from 14 retailers, representing 87 per cent of the supply points and 85.7 per cent of the water consumption in the market. It will work on improving coverage further ahead of the 2021 survey.