The average household water and sewerage bill in England and Wales will rise by 6pc from April 1, the industry has confirmed, as companies battle to fix sewage spills and leaking pipes.

Millions of homeowners will pay an extra £27 a year, taking typical bills to £473 annually.

Wessex Water and Anglian Water are at the top end of the scale, with average bills set to increase to £548 and £529 respectively, while Northumbrian customers will see the lowest average bills of £422.

In return, industry body Water UK said companies would invest a record £14.4bn to ensure supply security and “significantly reduce” the amount of sewage in rivers and seas.

The rise comes amid ongoing regulatory concern over dividends paid out by water firms to shareholders amid the cost-of-living crisis and public fury about sewage overflows into waters.

Water UK said bills were rising less than they did in the previous financial year, and argued that they would be around £60 higher today if they had kept pace with inflation since 2014.

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