Bath-headquartered utility Wessex Water has retained a top quality standard for its customer service, with the independent assessors describing it as the most efficient company in the industry.
The firm, which has its head office at Claverton Down and employs around 2,500 people across the West of England, became the first of its kind to achieve the coveted Customer Service Excellence (CSE) quality mark in 1996.
It is currently one of just two UK water companies recognised as CSE holders by the world-leading independent inspectorate SGS.
The assessment report accompanying its accreditation highlighted how Wessex Water had the lowest number of complaints of all the water and sewerage companies.
It also highlighted several areas of good practice at Wessex Water, including how it:
gains a better understanding of the needs and preferences of different customer groups
works with providers and partners to offer and supply coordinated services for customers
regularly reviews and improves its complaints procedure by listening to customer feedback.
The report reads: “Wessex Water is regarded as one of the best managed and most successful water companies in the country, delivering some of the best quality services in the UK according to the industry regulator Ofwat.
“They are recognised as the most efficient in the industry and one of the top performing companies in Ofwat’s new measure of customer experience (C-Mex) which analyses the service and delivery performance of water companies.”
During the five-year regulatory period to the end of March 2020, Wessex Water was consistently rated as one of the top water and sewerage companies for service, efficiency, standards and environmental performance.
Wessex Water group director of communication and community Marilyn Smith said: “We have once again received some extremely positive feedback from SGS, and their report recognises that we continue to put customers first and find new ways to help them.”
At the end of last year Wessex Water also retained its ServiceMark with Distinction accreditation from the Institute of Customer Service (ICS) for a further 18 months.
Distinction is the very highest level of ServiceMark accreditation that can be achieved. Wessex Water is one of only 18 companies in the country to hold it.
Wessex Water, which is owned by YTL Power International, part of the Malaysian conglomerate YTL, supplies water and sewage services to 2.8m customers across an area of 10,000 sq km stretching from Bath and Wiltshire to Bristol, Somerset, Dorset and parts of Gloucestershire.
