The Good News is that they can’t cut off your water

But they can an instruct debt collectors who may try to contact you and be quite persistent. It is reasonable to expect to be warned if they have instructed any one else on the subject of your bill payments.

Whether replying to Thames or speaking to communicating with debt collecters you should maintain throughout that the bill remains disputed. This should go a long way to helping protect against the intervention of a debt collector.

• Make sure that your customer reference is clearly marked on all correspondence and is linked with your ongoing dispute.
• Take some comfort from the experience of early boycotters whose complaints remain ongoing after many months, with no sign of debt collectors or court summons.
• Make sure that you keep TW informed that the dispute is ongoing and has not been resolved. Provided a bill remains in dispute TW should not take any sort of enforcement action.
• Follow the complaints process through as much as you can. After exhausting the water company process, escalate the complaint to the Consumer Council for Water, OFWAT and the Environment Agency. It’s unlikely to get you anywhere other than having lots of evidence to show that you have not paid because of a dispute.
• TW is subject to the Paying Fair Guidelines published by OFWAT. These are lengthy and are largely designed for vulnerable customers. They are unlikely to provide you with any further basis for disputes about services or charges to bill payers.
• Referring a customer to a debt collection agency without informing them first may be regarded as unlawful harassment.
• If you are contacted by a debt collector then engage with them straight away. Do not leave it and hope it will go away! Explain to the debt collector that the dispute is ongoing. They should then withdraw.
• Administration of Justice Act 1970 makes harassment of a debtor a criminal offence.
• There are a number of guides to what may or may not amount to harassment of a debtor and what to do about it. Eg see guidance from Citizens Advice Bureau.
• If you get cold feet, just pay the bill. There is no shame in this. At least you have added your voice to the chorus of indignation and added to the pressure on Thames Water. You can always just start again!
• It is strongly advisable to set aside the money that you are withholding. This is an obvious safeguard against the risk that you will at some point feel obliged to pay and find you don’t have the money to do so.

In England, non-payment of water bills generally does not directly affect your credit rating in the same way as missing payments on a loan or credit card. However, it can still have consequences if the debt remains unpaid.

📌 Debt Collection Agency Involvement

• If you ignore reminders, your provider may pass the debt to a collection agency.
• Debt collectors do not report to credit agencies, but they may pressure you for payment.

📌 County Court Judgment (CCJ) – This Affects Your Credit Score

• If the debt remains unpaid, the water company can take legal action through the County Court.
• If the court issues a County Court Judgment (CCJ) against you and you fail to pay within 30 days, it will appear on your credit report for 6 years. Banks and loan companies use this information to decide whether to give you credit or loans.
• However If you pay the full amount within one month, you can get the judgment removed from the register.
• If you pay after one month, you can get the record of the judgment marked as ‘satisfied’ in the register.  It will stay on the register for 6 years but people searching the register will see that you’ve paid.
• A CCJ severely impacts your credit rating, making it harder to get loans, credit cards, or even a mortgage.

📌 High Court Enforcement or Bailiffs

• If you still don’t pay after the CCJ they may escalate enforcement by instructing their debt collectors to bring in the bailiffs. You are not legally obliged to allow entry to bailiffs, as you are with the police. If you don’t let them in they have no right to force entry and you can call the police if they do.

See here for full information on County court judgements