Yorkshire Water to help thousands in Yorkshire pay their bills

Yorkshire Water is aiming to help thousands of customers across Yorkshire who are struggling, by offering financial support to help pay their water bills this financial year.

The company has a number of schemes in place to help those who need it and across the county is making up to £11.5m available in a bid to help 37,500 customers.

Yorkshire Water has four main schemes: Resolve, which helps those who are struggling to catch up on previous bills. WaterSupport, which helps customers on lower incomes pay water charges and Community Trust for customers who have arrears. There is also Watersure, which can help those on a water meter who receive an income-based benefit. Customers who are eligible for this scheme must also have a medical condition which requires more water or have three or more children under the age of 19.

The average saving for a WaterSure customer is £461.92 a year and for WaterSupport is £183.84.

Over the previous four years the company has helped over 60,000 customers saving them £35m.

Yorkshire Water Customer Support Manager Angie Markham-Nock, said: “We understand the worry that debt and bills can cause customers, which is why we have a number of schemes in place to help.

“If customers are struggling to pay bills, we really are here to help. They can ring us on 0345 1 299 299 and we will go through the options and help in whatever way we can.”

Sue Anderson from StepChange debt charity, said: “In the first half of 2019, around a quarter of the clients who turned to StepChange for help with their debts were in arrears on their water bills. Anything that makes it easier for people to keep up with their commitments, and to get help when they need it, is very welcome.”

Kiri Saunders from debt counselling charity Christians Against Poverty (CAP) said: “At CAP we are seeing an increasing number of people struggling to afford their daily living costs. With nine in ten (91%) of the people we help on incomes lower than the national average, bill and debt reduction schemes like Yorkshire Water's go a long way to help people on squeezed incomes. CAP is working closely with Yorkshire Water to ensure that the people we help have access to the great support on offer.”

Full details of each scheme and how to apply are available on the Yorkshire Water website > https://www.yorkshirewater.com/billing-payments/help-paying-your-bill/