One-third of UK adults would be willing to pay more for water bills to boost resilience against water shortages and flooding, polling has shown.
A survey conducted last week (17 August) suggested high levels of concern about the water crisis, with 65% of people stating they feel worried and 68% think extreme weather events including flood and droughts will get more frequent.
The survey of more than 1,000 adults highlighted that 32% of billpayers would pay more on water bills to fund necessary infrastructure investments to address future challenges. However 47% said they would not be happy to pay more for resilience and 21% did not know.
Of those who recognised water shortages this summer as a crisis (65%), 70% said their behaviour had shifted towards using less water, suggesting water efficiency messaging and hosepipe bans have had an impact. Only 1% said their usage had increased this summer and the remaining 29% believed consumption was unchanged.
“The consequences of the prolonged heatwave have clearly hit home with the public and a significant majority have changed their behaviour by making a conscious effort to save water,” said Jennifer Riddell Carpenter, board director at Cavendish Advocacy, which commissioned the research.
On willingness to pay for infrastructure solutions that reduce risks of flooding or droughts, Riddell Carpenter added: “Politicians and the water industry should take note of the potential public appetite to drive forward a more robust water system, that reduces the risk of droughts and floods.”
Most participants (85%) cited prices and cost of living as the most important factor to them when considering household utilities. Support for vulnerable customers, as well as customer service, were also ranked as important to billpayers followed by environmental issues and net zero, which 44% of respondents said was an important factor to them.
Ownership models meanwhile were deemed to be ‘very important’ to just 9% of those surveyed.
Affordability and resilience will be explored in depth at the Utility Week Forum this November in London. For full details see here.