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Business water by wholesaler
Which wholesaler serves your business in England, how to check from your bill or postcode, and why it decides your wholesale and drainage charges.
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Home / Business water by wholesaler
Last updated October 2026
Wholesalers
Business water by wholesaler
Your wholesaler is the regional company that owns the pipes and sewers serving your site. It sets the wholesale charges and drainage rules on your bill. Your retailer is the company that sends you the bill, and you can choose it.
The Business Water Shop is an independent business water broker and a trading name of Clearsight Energy. We compare quotes from a panel of licensed water retailers for businesses in England and Scotland.
The wholesalers serving English businesses
Ofwat’s list of water companies splits them into water and sewerage companies and water-only companies, and the table below follows that split for the wholesalers serving English businesses. The areas are as the Consumer Council for Water describes them. Bristol Water is now South West Water trading as Bristol Water, but its area keeps its own name and its own wholesale charges. CCW also lists Bournemouth Water, Cambridge Water and Essex & Suffolk Water, which supply water under their own names in those areas.
| Wholesaler | Services | Area served |
|---|---|---|
| Anglian Water | Water and sewerage | East of England |
| Northumbrian Water | Water and sewerage | North East England |
| Severn Trent Water | Water and sewerage | Midlands, from the outskirts of Sheffield down to Bristol |
| South West Water | Water and sewerage | Cornwall, Devon, the Isles of Scilly and parts of Dorset and Somerset |
| Southern Water | Water and sewerage | Kent, Hampshire, the Isle of Wight, East and West Sussex |
| Thames Water | Water and sewerage | London and the Thames Valley |
| United Utilities | Water and sewerage | North West of England |
| Wessex Water | Water and sewerage | South West of England |
| Yorkshire Water | Water and sewerage | Yorkshire |
| Affinity Water | Water only | North and West London and the surrounding Home Counties |
| Portsmouth Water | Water only | Portsmouth and surrounding areas |
| South East Water | Water only | South East of England |
| South Staffs Water | Water only | West Midlands, South Staffordshire, South Derbyshire, North Warwickshire, North Worcestershire |
| SES Water | Water only | Surrey, Kent and South London |
| Bristol Water | Water only (sewerage for most customers from Wessex Water) | Bristol and surrounding areas |
Water from one company, sewerage from another
If you’re in a water-only company’s area, two wholesalers serve your site. One supplies the water, and a water and sewerage company takes the wastewater away. A business in Watford or South Croydon, for example, might get water from Affinity or SES and sewerage from Thames Water. It still comes as one bill from your retailer, but each part follows its own wholesaler’s charges and rules.
How to find yours
Your bill may name the wholesaler, or both of them if your services are split. If it doesn’t, the Water UK postcode lookup shows your water and wastewater companies. Ofwat’s contact list includes a map of who supplies each area. Your SPID links the supply point to the right wholesaler, which is why it’s one of the two things we ask for.
Why it matters
Your wholesaler decides three things you can’t change by switching retailer:
- your wholesale charges, which rose by between 2.8% and 17.1% on average for 2026/27
- how surface water drainage is charged and rebated
- the rate it charges for trade effluent
Our 2026/27 charges page has every wholesaler’s figure, and a water audit checks whether you’re owed a drainage rebate and handles the claim.
Scotland
Scotland has one wholesaler, Scottish Water. Its clean water charges rose by an average of 8.67% for 2026/27. There’s more on our Scotland page.
How we’d handle this
We’d use your SPID to confirm which wholesaler or wholesalers serve the site. Then we’d set out the wholesale charge, which is the same on every quote, and compare retail fees from our panel of licensed retailers.
Send us your business address and SPID and we’ll quote straight away. Compare business water suppliers
Questions
Questions businesses ask
Can I change my wholesaler?
No. It’s set by where your site is. You can change your retailer.
Why do I see two company names for one site?
Your water and sewerage come from different wholesalers. That’s normal in water-only areas.
Does my wholesaler affect drainage rebates?
Yes. Drainage charges and rebate claims follow your wholesaler’s own rules, so the process differs by area. A water audit checks whether you’re owed a rebate and handles the claim.
Sources6 references we checked for this page
- Water companies ofwat.gov.uk
- About us bristolwater.co.uk
- Water companies ccw.org.uk
- Find your supplier water.org.uk
- Wholesaler price changes water-plus.co.uk
- About SES Water seswater.co.uk
