You cannot use a hosepipe or sprinkler at home. A watering can or bucket is still fine, and the maximum fine is £1,000.
Started
23 July 2026
Ends
Until further notice
Areas covered: The whole Thames Water drinking-water supply area, covering London, the Thames Valley and the home counties. Customers Thames Water serves for wastewater only, and customers supplied with drinking water by another company, are not affected.
TWThames Water·Status checked just now·page dated 24 July 2026
We are an unofficial tracker, so Thames Water’s own notice is the version that legally applies to you.
What a hosepipe ban prohibits, and the fine
Temporary Use Bans are made under section 76 of the Water Industry Act 1991, which lists the eleven prohibited uses at s.76(2). The Water Use (Temporary Bans) Order 2010 (SI 2010/2231) defines them. A company cannot add to that list, so the eleven uses below are the same in Guildford as anywhere else in England and Wales.
Watering a garden using a hosepipe
Cleaning a private motor vehicle using a hosepipe
Watering plants on domestic or other non-commercial premises using a hosepipe
Cleaning a private leisure boat using a hosepipe
Filling or maintaining a domestic swimming or paddling pool
Drawing water, using a hosepipe, for domestic recreational use
Filling or maintaining a domestic pond using a hosepipe
Filling or maintaining an ornamental fountain
Cleaning walls, or windows, of domestic premises using a hosepipe
Cleaning paths or patios using a hosepipe
Cleaning other artificial outdoor surfaces using a hosepipe
The maximum is level 3 on the standard scale, currently £1,000, under section 76(5) of the Water Industry Act 1991. It is not a fixed penalty the company issues itself, and enforcement in practice begins with a warning.
What this means at your address
A hosepipe ban is set by your water company, not your council, and most bans cover only part of a company’s area. Guildford is billed by Thames Water, so its rules are the ones that apply here, but the boundary can run through a town: your postcode is the only certain answer.
Yes. Guildford is supplied by Thames Water, whose hosepipe ban is in force here. A watering can, a bucket and collected rainwater are never restricted.
Which water company supplies Guildford?
Guildford is supplied by Thames Water. Your water bill confirms your supplier, and a ban is set per company, not per town, so the boundary can run through a town.
What is the fine for breaking a hosepipe ban?
Up to 1,000 pounds, imposed by a magistrates' court on conviction, not a fixed penalty set by the water company. In practice enforcement starts with a warning.