An exploration of customers’ satisfaction with water and wastewater services in the UK

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dc.contributor.authorTian, Kang
dc.contributor.authorGoodwin, Daniel
dc.contributor.authorGallagher, Elaine
dc.contributor.authorSmith, Heather M.
dc.date.accessioned2023-03-15T11:29:47Z
dc.date.available2023-03-15T11:29:47Z
dc.date.issued2023-02-03
dc.description.abstractIn this research, we examine the relationship between customer satisfaction with water and wastewater services, demographic factors, communication with the utility, and perceived trustworthiness. Through a survey of the UK public (n = 760), we found that 77% of the respondents stated they were satisfied with their water and wastewater services. Statistical analysis highlighted significant demographic differences in the level of satisfaction, particularly by age, with higher satisfaction in older respondents. We found that the degree to which respondents think their water utility can be trusted to provide accurate information predicted satisfaction, as did more frequent engagement with a water utility’s social media. More frequently contacting a water utility or discussing water services with friends and family both negatively predicted satisfaction. Meeting the public’s expectations for accurate and timely information is coupled with their perceptions of a water utility’s trustworthiness and their satisfaction with water and wastewater services. Water utilities may increase the satisfaction of their customers through strategies and initiatives that are attentive to the credibility of the information they provide and the means through which they provide it. In summary, our research indicates that the water sector’s ambition to develop more diverse (and inclusive) customer engagement experiences, including through online platforms and social media, may deliver benefits (particularly with the less engaged and younger age groups across varying regional water governance contexts) that complement overall efforts to build trust and satisfaction, but we acknowledge that these are complex long-term processes.en_UK
dc.description.sponsorshipEuropean Union funding: 689450en_UK
dc.identifier.citationTian K, Goodwin D, Gallagher E, Smith HM. (2023) An exploration of customers’ satisfaction with water and wastewater services in the UK, Water Economics and Policy, Volume 9, Issue 2, June 2023, Article number 2350001en_UK
dc.identifier.eisbn2382-6258
dc.identifier.issn2382-624X
dc.identifier.urihttps://doi.org/10.1142/S2382624X23500017
dc.identifier.urihttps://dspace.lib.cranfield.ac.uk/handle/1826/19299
dc.language.isoenen_UK
dc.publisherWorld Scientificen_UK
dc.rightsAttribution 4.0 International*
dc.rights.urihttp://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/*
dc.subjectpublic perceptionsen_UK
dc.subjectwater and wastewater servicesen_UK
dc.subjectcustomer satisfactionen_UK
dc.subjectcommunicationen_UK
dc.subjecttrusten_UK
dc.titleAn exploration of customers’ satisfaction with water and wastewater services in the UKen_UK
dc.typeArticleen_UK

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