119 water outages. SWW

Ragged1953

I began counting the occasions after it became obvious there was a problem. 119 in a decade.
Only 57 since 2020. Usually 3 hours but sometimes longer.
I'm on the Priority Register though this hasn't helped.
At least 50 emails sent.
I admit they say I must use the Consumer Council for Water. As they are the guilty party I refuse to accept that they decide the conditions. Imagine in a courtroom the defendent decides on the judge jury and outcome.
I'm asking for a face to face solution with no further excuses and no more blaming others ( a recent tactic).
As a disabled pensioner recovering from cancer and major surgery doing without water so often necessitates a 10 miles round trip to buy bottled. Can't take essential meds. Can't bathe, cook. Have to boil water every evening in case!
SWW will not listen to my plea for repair to the pump and trip switch at their generator. Nor will they heed d my plea for compensation.
Already this month ( today is the 6th February) there have been 3 failures ....in 6 days.
I have never witheld my payment nor threatened to do so.
I seek an adult resolution without arbitration...... surely they are in breach of something 

p00hsticks

Ragged1953 said:

I admit they say I must use the Consumer Council for Water. As they are the guilty party I refuse to accept that they decide the conditions. 

The phrase ' cutting your nose off to spite your face' springs to mind with this...

Ragged1953

Cutting off my nose etc.
Perhaps.
But at what point are principles jettisoned for expediency?
At what point do you say I'll go with their demands because it makes them happy?
Regardless, thanks for your help.

p00hsticks

Ragged1953 said:

At what point do you say I'll go with their demands because it makes them happy?

Well, for me, it would be when I'd 3 water outages in 6 days (let alone over 100 in a decade) - but then life would be boring if we were all the same.

I hope you manage to get things sorted, but if it's been going on that long I can't imagine that it will be. 

Ragged1953

This saga, for it has become one, could be resolved. Promises of bottled water, water bowsers, engineer to resolve the almost permanent aeration.... fantasy.
I've presented evidence to them.... verifiable evidence with photos and video ( exif data too) but perhaps the sewage scandals and the scandal over a desalination plant in Cornwall are as much as they can cope with.
I'm baffled.
Adults would sort it out. But recently they have been blaming National Grid. If they were responsible SWW would have dealt with it.
The sheer number of outages is astonishing.
That a customer be treated with such disdain is appalling.
That a disabled pensioner recovering from cancer surgery is treated as a nuisance beggars belief.
I'll plod on. My ancestors didn't go through hard times so that I'd be bullied by a utility company.
Cheers 

MattMattMattUK

Ragged1953 said:

This saga, for it has become one, could be resolved. Promises of bottled water, water bowsers, engineer to resolve the almost permanent aeration.... fantasy.

I think the fantasy is doing the same thing again and again and expecting a different result. You keep emailing SWW, that is not working, the option is to take a formal complaint through CCfW, you refuse to do that...

Ragged1953 said:

I've presented evidence to them.... verifiable evidence with photos and video ( exif data too) but perhaps the sewage scandals and the scandal over a desalination plant in Cornwall are as much as they can cope with.
I'm baffled.

I am not sure how you feel that will help in any way if you do not take your complaint through the proper route. Nor does the sewerage or purification issues impact supply to you directly so bringing them up as part of your complaint is an irrelevance. 

Ragged1953 said:

Adults would sort it out. 

I am not sure what you think is not adult.

Ragged1953 said:

But recently they have been blaming National Grid. If they were responsible SWW would have dealt with it.

There could be a power supply problem to the pump that can only be resolved by National Grid, they might need to investigate and find the problem with the power supply, or it could be an excuse. 

Ragged1953 said:

The sheer number of outages is astonishing.

It is, over 100 in a decade is very high, personally I would complain via the CCfW...

Ragged1953 said:

That a customer be treated with such disdain is appalling.
That a disabled pensioner recovering from cancer surgery is treated as a nuisance beggars belief.
I'll plod on. My ancestors didn't go through hard times so that I'd be bullied by a utility company.
Cheers 

You are not being bullied, raise a proper complaint as you have been advised to do. 

Ragged1953

Thanks Matt for your quite forensic analysis. Unfortunately you have missed a crucial point.
You assume that the Company have sole rights to determine the path of the complaints process.
Why should this be so?
Why should the complainant have no rights to decide the course of action?
Supply and payment for water is a contract. In law it's as strong as any. Similarly if you buy a good in a shop both parties enter an implied contract.
Therefore SWW are in breach of contract 119 times. It's quite unconscionable to assume the accused will decide on the rules.
Bullied. Hmmm. Using the power of the company to determine when and how I receive water when they have the power to repair the pump/machine but refuse to do so is an abuse. One day they supplied 24 bottles of water. Quite random, and the only time they've done so, with no advanced notification. Fortunately the delivery person carried them in. A neighbour lifted them onto a surface. An abuse of power to impact a disabled pensioner's quality of life is bullying.
I'll close.
But: the accused should not presume authority; breach of contract is a significant issue.
I'm here to garner views and opinions.
Thank you for your help.

MattMattMattUK

Ragged1953 said:

Thanks Matt for your quite forensic analysis. Unfortunately you have missed a crucial point.
You assume that the Company have sole rights to determine the path of the complaints process.
Why should this be so?
Why should the complainant have no rights to decide the course of action?

I am not making an assumption. They do not, the complaints procedure is set by the regulator, they are required to follow that process, hence them informing you of what you need to do. You have not legal right to any complaints process beyond those proscribed in a regulated sector.

Ragged1953 said:

Supply and payment for water is a contract. In law it's as strong as any. Similarly if you buy a good in a shop both parties enter an implied contract.
Therefore SWW are in breach of contract 119 times. It's quite unconscionable to assume the accused will decide on the rules.

They are not in breach of contract, you need to read the supply contract, again, for a regulated sector it is very specific, they do not decide the rules, Ofwat do.

Ragged1953 said:

Bullied. Hmmm. Using the power of the company to determine when and how I receive water when they have the power to repair the pump/machine but refuse to do so is an abuse. One day they supplied 24 bottles of water. Quite random, and the only time they've done so, with no advanced notification. Fortunately the delivery person carried them in. A neighbour lifted them onto a surface.

You are not being bullied no matter how you try and dress it up. If you want to get anywhere with this you need to remove the hyperbole and deal with the facts.

Ragged1953 said:

An abuse of power to impact a disabled pensioner's quality of life is bullying.

No it is not. They are not bullying you, they are not abusing their power. Again, you need to cut out the hyperbole. 

Ragged1953 said:

I'll close.
But: the accused should not presume authority; breach of contract is a significant issue.
I'm here to garner views and opinions.
Thank you for your help.

If you think it is breach of contract then you really need to read the contract, the supply license and the regulator's guidance, because it is not. 
The route that you need to follow is raising a complaint via the CCfW, this has been advised both by SWW and on here. You can ignore the regulated complaints process and SWW will continue to ignore you, you can try to take them to court and have it thrown out, or you can go via the regulated complaints process which leads to a decision that must be followed by SWW or they will be fined quite significant amounts. 

Your choice is to keep shouting at the sky, or do something that will get your issues solved. I would advise you to choose the latter, as will anyone else sensible you speak to.

jimjames

Ragged1953 said:

Thanks Matt for your quite forensic analysis. Unfortunately you have missed a crucial point.
You assume that the Company have sole rights to determine the path of the complaints process.
Why should this be so?

The reason is nothing to do with the company and they have no part in determining the escalated complaint process once their own has been exhausted. That is dictated by the regulator, not the company and nothing you do or say will alter that system which has been in place for many years.