The Water Industry Commission for Scotland (WICS), the independent economic regulator for Scotland’s water, has published its Draft Determination of charges for the next six years following detailed review of Scottish Water’s business plan.
Our Draft Determination sets out the maximum charges Scottish Water could apply, the investment programme it would be funded to deliver, and the service improvements customers should expect in return. We are now inviting people, businesses and organisations across Scotland to comment before we reach our Final Determination in October.
Our proposal would limit the annual change in bills to no more than 2% above inflation in the normal course of events, or 2.3% if certain costs materialise. Average bills would rise by around £12 per year before inflation, around £7 less than Scottish Water proposed.
Scottish customers currently pay some of the lowest water bills in the UK and, because Scottish Water is publicly owned, every pound collected is reinvested in the system.
Our draft decision also supports record levels of investment of around £7.9 billion in Scotland's water and wastewater services. This is a 30% increase on the investment programme for the current regulatory period and would support improvements in drinking water quality, supply reliability, leakage reductions, sewer flooding, environmental protection and resilience to climate change.
Our draft determination identifies opportunities to reduce Scottish Water’s proposed spending by £360 million while maintaining the outcomes and improvements customers value most. These include targets to reduce leakage by 67 million litres per day, or 15%, saving enough water to fill over 26 Olympic-sized swimming pools daily. The proposals also require fewer pollution and flooding incidents and offer greater protections for customers.
WICS chief executive David Satti said: “Our Draft Determination is intended to protect customers from paying more than they need to, while ensuring Scottish Water can invest in the safe, reliable and resilient services Scotland will need in the years ahead.
“We have allowed for a significant increase in investment, but we have also challenged Scottish Water’s costs and made some funding conditional. This is how we ensure that customers only pay where investment is necessary, efficient, deliverable and produces clear benefits.
“The decisions made for the next regulatory period will shape the reliability, resilience and affordability of water and wastewater services for years to come. We want to hear from customers, communities, businesses and other stakeholders before we reach our Final Determination.”
The consultation on the Draft Determination runs from 30 June to 1 September 2026. WICS will publish its Final Determination of charges on 29 October 2026, with the new charges taking effect from 1 April 2027.
ENDS
Contact press@wics.scot for further information.
Notes for editors
- The Water Industry Commission for Scotland (WICS) is the economic regulator of the Scottish water industry. Its statutory role is to promote the interests of customers by challenging Scottish Water to improve performance and deliver value.
- Economic regulation in Scotland has delivered average household bills that are around £120 lower than would otherwise have been the case were it not for the efficiencies WICS has required of Scottish Water.
- After reviewing Scottish Water’s business plan, WICS sets a cap on the maximum charges Scottish Water can apply and defines performance targets and investment levels every six years through a regulatory process called ‘The Strategic Review of Charges’.
- The Draft Determination for 2027-33 supports £7.9 billion of investment while capping charge increases at CPI+ 2%.
- Some costs outside Scottish Water’s control (e.g. energy) may trigger an additional conditional allowance of up to 0.3% in the final three years, where justified by evidence.
- Under WICS’ draft decision, average household bills would be projected to be around £537 in 2026-27 to between £605 or £610 by 2032-33, depending on whether the conditional allowance applies.
- Over 99%, of household customers pay their water and wastewater charges based on their council tax band, with annual charges ranging from £435 for a Band A customer to £1,305 for a Band H customer in 2026-27. Under WICS’ draft decision, this will increase to £494 for a Band A customer and £1,482 for a Band H customer by 2032-33 before inflation (excluding discounts for those eligible).
- Scottish Ministers set the Principles of Charging for each regulatory period which outlines the policy decisions about how water charges are collected and which discounts apply.
- Around half of Scottish Water’s household customers qualify for a discount or exemption, such as the single-person discount and the Water Charges Reduction Scheme (WCRS).
- These discounts are worth a combined total of over £200m, with the average discount for an eligible household reducing their bill by a third or around £160 per year.
Before inflation |
2026-27 |
2027-28 |
2028-29 |
2029-30 |
2030-31 |
2031-32 |
2032-33 |
| If uncertain costs do not materialise | £537 | £548 | £559 | £570 | £581 | £593 | £605 |
| If uncertain costs materialise | £537 | £548 | £559 | £570 | £583 | £596 | £610 |