Our use of cookies Complying with Water Fittings Regulations for businesses
The Water Fittings Regulations are legal requirements designed to protect the quality of drinking water supplies in the UK.
These regulations legally require businesses that are connected to the mains water supply to obtain permission before carrying out certain types of plumbing work.
This guide summarises the legal obligations for businesses set out by the Water Fittings Regulations. Here’s what we cover:
- What are the Water Supply (Water Fittings) Regulations 1999?
- What are water fittings?
- Why Water Fittings Regulations exist
- Who must comply with Water Fittings Regulations?
- When water companies must be notified for water fittings installations and alterations
What are the Water Supply (Water Fittings) Regulations 1999?
The Water Supply (Water Fittings) Regulations 1999 are the laws governing the design, installation and maintenance of water fittings and plumbing systems in England and Wales. They were created under the Water Industry Act 1991.
The regulations prevent water fittings from being installed or used in a way that is likely to cause waste, misuse, undue consumption, contamination, or erroneous measurement of the water supply.
The legislation aims to protect public health and the quality of drinking water supplies.
The legislation applies to owners, occupiers, and anyone installing or altering water fittings at premises connected to the mains water supply.
Scottish and Northern Ireland equivalents
The Water Fittings Regulations are devolved on a national level in the UK. The equivalent legislation from Scotland and Northern Ireland is as follows:
- Scotland – Water Supply (Water Fittings) (Scotland) Byelaws (2014)
- Northern Ireland – The Water Supply (Water Fittings) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2009
What are water fittings?
In the Water Fittings Regulations, the term “water fittings” covers any item within premises that is connected to your water supply.
From a business perspective, water fittings include the following:
- Pipework
- Your water meter
- Taps and outlets
- Washroom facilities
- Showers and baths
- Storage and heating
- Dishwashers and washing machines
- Water treatment units
- Backflow prevention devices
- Irrigation systems
The regulations apply to any water fittings installed after the point where water enters the properties water supply pipe, usually at the boundary of the site.
Why Water Fittings Regulations exist
The Water Fittings Regulations are designed to prevent five potential risks:
Wasted water
This happens when mains water escapes before it is ever put to use, often through commercial water leaks, faulty joints or overflowing cisterns.
In the UK, there is a significant carbon footprint associated with mains water due to the treatment processes and the energy used to pump water through British water infrastructure.
The Water Fittings Regulations seek to ensure water fittings are installed in a way that prevents water from being wasted unnecessarily.
Find out more in our full article on the environmental impact of the water industry.
Misuse of water supplies
Misuse is using the water supply for a purpose it wasn’t intended for, or in an improper way that puts it at risk.
In practice, this covers things like inappropriate flows of cooling water and using mains pressure for purposes other than delivering a water supply.
Undue consumption
Undue consumption is using more water than is reasonably necessary for a task, usually because of inefficient fittings or appliances.
The regulations specifically apply to water efficiency measures in day-to-day water usage, such as toilet-flushing volumes, tap flow rates and the water used in appliance cycles.
Find out more in our full guide to reducing your business’s water consumption.
Contamination
Contamination is the risk that any used, stored or non-potable water supply contaminates the mains water supply through backflow. Preventing this protects drinking water across the whole network.
The Water Fittings Regulations require fittings to include backflow protection to prevent any water from being drawn or pushed back into the mains.
Erroneous measurement
The Water Fittings Regulations prohibit any work that may affect the way water is measured at commercial properties.
Most commercial properties in the UK are equipped with a business water meter that records the property’s water consumption to determine business water rates.
The regulations strictly prohibit any actions that would result in an erroneous measurement of water.
Who must comply with Water Fittings Regulations?
The Water Fittings Regulations apply to any premises connected to the public mains water supply, and the legal duty to comply is shared across everyone involved with water fittings.
The regulations capture anyone who “causes” or “permits” work on a plumbing system. For businesses, this typically includes:
- Business owners and occupiers of the premises
- Landlords and tenants of leased commercial property
- Facilities and building services managers responsible for the site
- The plumbers, contractors and installers carrying out any work
For business owners, the most practical way of complying with the Water Fittings Regulations is to use an approved contractor for any plumbing work. These contractors will provide a signed certificate to confirm that their work complies with the legislative requirements.
We recommend using the Water Safe search function to find approved plumbers and other water specialists in your area. The WaterSafe is a non-profit funded by Ofwat and other regulators.
When water companies must be notified for water fittings installations and alterations
The Water Fittings Regulations require anyone proposing to install or alter certain types of water fittings to give notice to the local water company in advance of the work commencing.
The plumbing work must not commence until either consent has been provided or ten working days have elapsed since the notification was submitted.
Advance notification is required for the following types of water fittings installations, extensions or alterations:
- A material change in the use of a property
- The extension or alteration of the water system
- The erection of a new building or other structure
- Installation of a rainwater harvesting system (Scotland and NI only)
- Installation of a greywater system (Scotland and NI only)
- Incorporating a borehole water supply (Scotland only)
- The construction of a pond or swimming pool which uses the water mains and has a volume greater than 10,000 litres
- A pump or pressure-boosting system drawing more than 12 litres per minute connected to water mains
- A reverse osmosis purification system
- An automatic garden watering system
Source: This list summarises the typical fittings requiring approval on a commercial property, extracted from Regulation 5 on the Water Regs UK website.
Each water company maintains a form on its website for submitting notifications regarding water fittings. Your water company must respond within ten working days.
💡 The local water companies operate the mains water network in your area (Thames Water, etc.) and are different from your business water supplier. Use Water.org’s postcode checker to find your local water company.
Water Fittings Regulations compliance issues
The broad set of rules contained within the Water Fittings Regulations means that non-compliance for businesses is common. Here’s a list of three common scenarios in which businesses are non-compliant:
- Starting notifiable work without notice or consent – The most frequent breach is beginning an installation, extension or alteration before notifying the water company and waiting for consent.
- Overlooking a material change of use – Changing what a property is used for (a shop becoming a café, an office becoming a clinic) alters the risk to the water supply but is easily forgotten as a notifiable event. A material change of use always requires advance notice.
- Missing or inadequate backflow protection – Failing to fit a suitable backflow prevention device where high-risk fluids are involved in the water fittings. Incorrectly installed systems with cross-connections lacking backflow preventers are a leading cause of water supply contamination.
What happens if a business breaches the Water Fittings Regulations?
Water companies have a legal duty to enforce the Water Fittings Regulations, and they mainly do this by proactively inspecting the plumbing systems of properties in their area.
The list below explains the three most common consequences for businesses that the water company finds to be in breach of the regulations:
- Remediation – Where water companies find a contravention of the regulations, they can require it to be remedied as soon as practicable.
- Disconnection – Where a breach poses a risk to health or results in a significant waste of water, the premises can be disconnected from the water mains.
- Fines – Failure to comply with the Water Fittings Regulations is a criminal offence. An individual or business found to be non-compliant can be fined up to £1,000 per offence.
Back to blog- Share:
