Roberts (Appellant) v Severn Trent Water Limited and Severn Trent PLC and Others (Respondents)
Wednesday 11 – Thursday 12 February 2026
By Appellant’s Notice submitted on 3 June 2025, the Appellant, claimant below, appeals decision of the Competition Appeals Tribunal dated 7 March 2025, dismissing six applications by the Appellant as the proposed class representative (“PCR”) for collective proceedings orders.
The Appellant seeks collective proceedings orders on an opt‑out basis against six water and sewerage undertakers. These companies operate as statutory monopolies under the Water Industry Act 1991 and are regulated by the Water Services Regulation Authority, which controls pricing and sets pollution‑related performance targets linked to financial incentives and penalties.
It is alleged that the undertakers significantly under‑reported pollution incidents, enabling them to charge household customers more than permitted. The proposed class representative seeks to bring the claims on behalf of all affected household customers, alleging an abuse of a dominant position contrary to section 18 of the Competition Act 1998, and seeks aggregate damages representing the overcharge. Ofwat intervened in the applications.
The Competition Appeal Tribunal held that the abuse‑of‑dominance claims were excluded by section 18(8) of the Water Industry Act 1991 but stated that, if they were not excluded, it would have granted collective proceedings orders.
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Day 1