Hundreds of shrink-wrapped packs of bottled water have been thrown away by South East Water following the end of the water shortage that affected up to 30,000 properties at the height of the problems before Christmas.
A Tonbridge resident said he was “disgusted” after he spotted a skip full of the multi-packs in Morley Road, saying the water could have been given to those in need. The resident, who wished to remain anonymous, said some bottles appeared to have been emptied on to the floor, but the majority in the skip were full.
They said “Surely this could have gone to the homeless or a charity. My water bills will go up as they are throwing away money. Not only is it the water but the amount of plastic that is being disposed of.”
South East Water (SEW) said the bottles had been collected from bottled water stations or returned by customers who no longer required them. SEW’s alternative water manager, Parris Durant, said it was unable to use the water bottles as it could not guarantee they had been stored correctly or not tampered with.
The bottles in the skip were to be emptied and recycled, SEW said.
Durant added: “All our bottled water supplies must comply with food safety standards.”
The water firm is to raise prices by an average of 7% from April.
It comes after regulator Ofwat opened an investigation into South East Water in January after repeated water supply failures across Kent and Sussex.
