Action taken against United Utilities over transparency failings

Water companies have a legal obligation to make information about the environment available under the Environmental Information Regulations (EIR), both proactively and if requested by the public. 

Following numerous complaints about its lack of transparency, the ICO has ordered United Utilities, which serves the North West, to urgently improve its handling of EIR requests.  

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The ICO’s investigation found that United Utilities has repeatedly failed to respond to requests for information within the legal timeframe of 20 working days.  

Following the complaints, the ICO also found that the water company often refuses to respond to requests because they claim that the information being requested isn’t environmental.

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The ICO has now instructed United Utilities to take a much broader interpretation of environmental information in line with decisions made by the Commissioner, and ensure it properly handles legitimate EIR requests.  

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The practice recommendation outlines further steps for United Utilities to take to improve its compliance, including proactively publishing information that is frequently requested and training its staff to handle requests appropriately.  

Warren Seddon, Director of FOI at the ICO, said: “Any information that would enlighten the public about how United Utilities operates and the impact it has on the environment is, by its very nature, likely environmental – this includes data on sewage spills and the performance of its wastewater treatment works.

“By using such a narrow interpretation of environmental information, United Utilities is deliberately ignoring the bigger picture to avoid their legal obligations to even consider whether to release the information people are legitimately asking for.” 

Earlier this year, the UK Information Commissioner John Edwards wrote to 12 water companies calling on them to put transparency first to rebuild public confidence in the sector. This followed ongoing concerns about sewage pollution and the lack of information made readily available.  

Warren added: “Our message to water companies is simple – we expect transparency to be your default position.

“It is unacceptable to keep people in the dark when they have no choice but to rely on these firms for clean water.

“By issuing our first practice recommendation under the EIR, we are holding United Utilities accountable for improving how it communicates with the public.   

“I urge all water companies to also take heed of our recommendations and build a culture where people receive timely responses to their requests and relevant information is published proactively.

“Being as open as possible about your activities will go a long way towards rebuilding public trust.”  

Labour MP for Blackpool South Chris Webb said: ”As MP for Blackpool South, where the sea is our greatest natural asset, I will do everything in my power to hold United Utilities to account to ensure the safety of our waters.

“In light of concerns about United Utilities’ failure to keep Blackpool’s water clean, I urge the company to comply with the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) and be more transparent. “I welcome the ICO’s latest action, alongside Ofwat’s ongoing investigation and the government’s introduction of significant new enforcement powers.” Failure to comply with a practice recommendation may lead to further enforcement action if an organisation is still not complying with the law.  

United Utilities is expected to respond to the ICO by February 2025 to confirm how it has complied with the practice recommendation, as well as publishing its action plan on its website.   

Water companies must release environmental information under the EIR. As the law stands, they are not legally obliged to release non-environmental information under the Freedom of Information Act. 

The water company has also been in the firing line for repeatedly dumping millions of litres of raw sewage illegally into Windermere over a three year period as reported by the BBC.

It has also been recorded as having one of the highest customer complaint rates with six complaints recorded in 2023.

The experts at Utility Bidder have revealed the UK water companies with the best quality success rates, those with the most complaints made against them in 2023, the most common factors causing failed water quality tests, the countries with the most and least amount of water-related deaths and those with the biggest and smallest decrease in water quality over the past 10 years. Among the water companies that received the joint second-largest amount of complaints in 2023 were Yorkshire Water and United Utilities, which both serve regions in the North of England.

The colder temperatures experienced in these areas pose additional challenges for water companies, as burst pipes are more of a threat when water freezes.