United Utilities is to become the first water company to introduce a new payment scheme that allows its customers greater flexibility when it comes to paying their bill.

The new innovative ‘Pay As U Go’ scheme will enable customers to make payments whenever they wish, to suit their specific financial circumstances. Once the United Utilities app has been downloaded, customers on ‘Pay As U Go' can easily make payments via their phone and keep up-to-date with their account.

“It’s a first for the water industry and something we’re really excited about,” said Jane Haymes, affordability manager at United Utilities.

“We know that many of our customers don’t get paid on a regular basis which makes it difficult to commit to a traditional Direct Debit arrangement. We think PAYG will be ideal for customers who work on an ad-hoc basis or don’t have the luxury of permanent hours.”

The new payment scheme will give customers the financial flexibility, with access to alter payment amounts throughout the year as they work towards paying off their annual bill.

Jane Haymes added:

“Every three months we’ll set a payment target – customers are then free to pay as much or as little as they wish as long as they achieve that payment target every 12 weeks. There are no fees or interest added to the account, so it’s a great way to have a much more flexible approach to paying your water bill”,

United Utilities works closely with money advice services. With 59 of the 100 most deprived neighbourhoods in the country being in the North West, United Utilities has one of the most extensive range of support schemes available for customers struggling to pay and is supportig around 200,000 customers through targeted financial support.