Controversies
Controversies tied to this brand in public sources. A listing is not a finding of fault.
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2021
Untreated sewage discharge prosecution
After pleading guilty to 51 offences involving untreated sewage discharges into coastal waters between 2010 and 2015, Southern Water was fined £90 million. The prosecution concerned thousands of illegal discharges and failures to report them properly.
2021
Southern Water fined for sewage discharges
Fine or penalty
Southern Water was fined £90 million after admitting charges relating to untreated sewage discharges. The sentencing judge described the conduct as a disregard for the environment.
Source excerpt
Southern Water has been fined a record £90m after dumping 7,400 swimming pools-worth of raw sewage into the environment.
I am deeply sorry for the historic incidents which have led to today’s sentencing and fine
The company admitted 6,971 illegal spills from 17 sites in Hampshire, Kent and West Sussex between 2010 and 2015, amounting to 51 criminal counts.
2019
Wastewater reporting and governance investigation
Ofwat found significant failures in reporting, governance, planning and wastewater-treatment operations covering 2010–2017. Southern Water agreed to provide approximately £123 million for customers and acknowledged the seriousness of the failures.
2016
Kent beach sewage flooding
Failures at a wastewater pumping station allowed raw sewage to flood Kent beaches. Beaches were closed for nine days and the company received a £2 million fine.
2014
Swalecliffe Brook pollution
The company was fined £500,000 after untreated sewage polluted Swalecliffe Brook and affected wildlife in an area connected to a protected coastal site.
2010
Sunnyside Stream sewage pollution
Southern Water was fined after raw sewage polluted a two-kilometre stretch of stream in Sussex and killed brown trout. The incident followed an earlier pollution event on the same sewer line.
2007
Deliberate misreporting and service-standard failures
Ofwat announced a proposed £20.3 million fine after finding that Southern Water had deliberately misreported information and failed to meet guaranteed standards of service. The conduct affected the company’s ability to justify customer price increases.